Now here we are with chapter 9. I'm sorry this took forever, I took a while figuring our exactly what Loki's role here would be, and then of course, Christmas rolled around, and there's the whole novelty of new gifts that I've been taking advantage of (especially since I go back to school soon, and it's not coming up with me, so I have to take advantage of it while I can). We've seen Loki slowly (very slowly) start to earn the trust of the team—sans Coulson, of course. Also, please remember that Ward recognized how he was... not himself under the influence of the berserker staff. Just keep that in mind near the beginning here.

Disclaimer: refer to chapter 1

"So, what was up with Loki?" Coulson asked when May entered his office.

"He said he saw..." She paused. Loki had told her that in confidence, but at the same time... this was Phil. "He saw the day he 'learned he was a monster'."

Coulson was quiet for a long time, and May had a feeling he knew more than he was letting on. She decided to let it go, at least for now. For the moment, at least, it wasn't important.

And it wasn't like she was telling him everything, either.

X

Loki had had enough time to school his features by the time Ward came around. In fact, had none of them seen his... incident with the berserker staff, no one would know anything was wrong in the first place. He could only hope that May had kept quiet about what he revealed to her.

"I just wanted to say thanks," the agent told him before he could speak, sitting across from him. "For helping us with the staff, and for... well, what happened in the lab."

"When you went off on Fitz-Simmons and I had to knock you out?" Loki asked. "I only did it because you were becoming annoying."

"Right," Ward said, unconvinced. "But seriously. Thanks. I was... really out of line and definitely needed some sense knocked into me."

"For all the good it did you when we acquired the rest of the staff," Loki replied dryly. "I didn't see you with much sense then. In fact, you reminded me a bit of my brother."

Ward looked thoughtful. "I wouldn't mind being compared to Thor," he said.

"Believe me, it wasn't a compliment." He leaned back with steepled fingers. "What did you end up doing with Randolph?" he asked.

"We let him go," Ward replied. "It's not like we had a reason to keep him here. He wasn't hurting anyone."

"And now he's returned to being a professor, teaching his own history as though it were myth?" Loki guessed.

"Most likely," Ward said, standing to leave. "I don't know what it was that the staff showed you, but whatever it was... I know it had to have been hard to relive."

Loki watched as the door closed behind the retreating agent. "Believe me, Agent Ward, you know nothing."

X

Skye watched as Coulson left with Ward and May. She and Fitz-Simmons knew about all of this, but she doubted their special Asgardian guest had been informed. As usual. She had a few minutes to fix that before she had to join them.

When she entered the Cage, Loki looked up. "If you're here to ask about what happened in the monastery, I suggest you turn around and leave," he warned.

Skye paused. Between the aftermath of the staff and this new thing with the possibly telekinetic woman, she'd forgotten about that. But since he didn't seem like he was in a chatty mood about it... "No, actually I'm here to give you an update. We sent the staff to be locked up in some super-secret S.H.I.E.L.D. facility, so it's safe. No one else is gonna be touching it any time soon."

"Good," Loki replied. "Agent Ward told me Randolph has been sent along on his merry way."

Skye nodded. "We also just found someone who might have to be put on the Index."

"Oh?" Loki asked, adjusting his position, now more interested.

"Yeah, she might be telekinetic. You know—"

"Moving objects with the power of her mind, yes, I know," the alien interjected. "Why does everyone assume I don't know these terms?"

"What?"

"Fitz-Simmons felt the need to define pyrokinesis for me," he explained.

"Oh. Well, anyway, some of us are leaving to kind of... see if she is," Skye told him. "And if she is telekinetic, then she has to register on the Index... however that happens. I'm not sure bringing May was the best idea to try to get to someone when they might be freaking out, since we all know she's not really the best in the 'comfort' department, but..." She paused for a moment. "You know, you might be getting out of here for a little bit again, soon. I don't know how this whole thing happens, but if we're taking her anywhere, she's probably gonna be stuck in here. Maybe you can hang out with me and Fitz-Simmons."

"If Coulson trusts me enough to leave me with you, unsupervised," Loki stated dryly.

"I think he might give you a chance," she replied. "A small one, at least." She smiled a little. "After all, you didn't have to come back, but you did anyway. And I think that means a lot." She glanced at her watch. "I better get going. See you later."

X

Loki turned from the screen to the others. "And why exactly does she get a mattress?"

"To help keep her calm, maybe?" Simmons guessed. "So she doesn't freak out and have some sort of... episode?"

"She did bust a car through a crowd into a telephone pole when she got upset before," Skye commented. "Who knows what she could do to the Bus?"

"I added some extra protection to it a little while back," Fitz started. "Some magnetic shielding, so it should keep her from affecting anything outside it."

"When did you find time to do that?" Loki asked. He couldn't recall any time where he'd been removed in order for Fitz to do some work on the Cage.

"It was while you were with Thor," Fitz replied. "I thought it would be a good time. No one was there, and if anything ever happened like the incident with the Chitauri helmet again... no one would have to jump out of a plane."

Loki looked at Simmons. "I'm still not entirely sure I understand that decision."

"All the other victims of the virus released a strong electrostatic pulse. Without an antiserum, I would have, and it would have blown the Bus out of the sky. So I... got off the Bus," Simmons defended.

"I don't believe anyone ever told me how you got back on," Loki said. "I understand Ward must have had something to do with it, but beyond that..."

"I gave him the antiserum and he jumped out of the plane, administered it, and pulled his parachute so they landed in the ocean safely," Fitz replied.

Loki shook his head in mild disbelief. "I don't understand how humans have survived this long, making stupid decisions like that."

"Hey, look, she's waking up," Skye said, cutting off their conversation and pointing to the screen. Coulson and May were walking into the Cage. She looked at Simmons, who was closest to the monitor. "Could you turn up the volume? I wanna hear this."

Simmons paused. "Are you sure we should eavesdrop?" she asked hesitantly.

"Should anything happen, it might be a good idea to fully understand the situation," Loki pointed out. "And we can't do that very well if we can't hear what they're saying."

"Alright," she said quietly, adjusting the volume of the camera feed.

"—some water," Coulson was saying, holding a bottle toward the woman who had backed into the corner. He set it down gently in front of her before taking a few steps back. "It's okay. I'm Phil. This is Melinda May."

"How did I get here?" the woman asked quietly.

"I sedated you," May informed her.

Loki turned to Skye. "Define 'sedated'," he said in a hushed tone.

"She shot her with a night-night gun," the brunette replied just as quietly. Loki smiled a bit to himself at the image it brought.

"I apologize for bringing you in that way," Coulson told the woman. "Things were escalating."

At everyone else's questioning look, Skye whispered, "I did say she busted a car through a telephone pole."

"Oh Lord, what have I done?" the woman was saying quietly when they tuned back into the conversation.

Coulson approached her slowly. "I promise you, Miss Hutchins, nobody was hurt back there."

Hutchins... At least Loki now had a name to put to the grainy face.

"Wherever I go, things turn bad," Hutchins said in a shaking voice.

"Were you angry at those people, back at the house?" May asked.

Hutchins shook her head. "No... I know most of them. They were angry. I understand. Oh, god... The way Frank's wife was looking at me..."

"Frank Delacort," Coulson stated. "He died in the accident."

"Accident?" Loki asked, turning to Fitz-Simmons.

"There was an explosion, a particle accelerator," Fitz explained. "Four people died, and Hutchins was apparently the safety inspector. A lot of people blame her for it."

"It also might be what gave her telekinetic powers, if she really has them," Simmons continued. "But it's still just a working theory."

The group watched as Coulson and May left the Cage before Fitz-Simmons went to check on their computer readouts. "Anything?" Skye asked.

Simmons shook her head. "No, everything seems normal. These readings are entirely within average ranges. Of course, it's hard to find something when you don't know what you're looking for. All I can tell from these brainwaves is that she's upset."

"I think we all picked up on that," Skye pointed out. She looked at Loki. "Any ideas?"

"I'm not entirely sure how humans can obtain these types of powers in the first place," Loki replied. "This woman, Chan Ho Yin, Mike Peterson..." At the questioning look he received, he clarified, "He was in the file on Centipede I was given to read before we went in after Chan. I know of certain magics that could mimic telekinetic abilities, but it would take decades, if not centuries, to accomplish the feats Miss Hutchins seems to have." He glanced back at the monitor. "I doubt her mental state is being helped by May's presence. She is the one who sedated her."

"Things got out of hand," Fitz said. "May sorted it out. She's the Cavalry."

"She's the what?" Loki asked with a raised brow.

"Yeah, you guys mentioned it before, but where does that name even come from?" Skye queried.

"Didn't Ward tell you?" Simmons asked.

Skye shook her head, and Loki simply said, "He's never in much of a chatting mood around me."

Loki could practically see the light bulb go on in Simmons's head. "Neither of you spent any time at the Academy," she stated. He could recognize that tone from a mile away. And the look she gave Fitz practically broadcasted that they were up to something. He was interested to see where they would go with this. "It's quite a story."

"Well, imagine if you will," Fitz started. "A heavily secured compound. Manama, Bahrain. Multiple S.H.I.E.L.D. agents are taken hostage, tortured for information. May's mission: eliminate the threat."

"You mean kill people," Skye guessed.

"Not people," Simmons said, shaking her head grimly. "Entire squads of mercenaries, almost a hundred."

"More than a hundred," Fitz jumped in.

"More than a hundred men, heavily armed. Her vehicle got totaled, so she rode in."

"And, um, she had an M-249 in each hand."

"Right. Each hand. And she rode in on a horse."

"Hence the name. The Cavalry," Fitz finished.

Skye raised a brow. "Is this real?"

"She eliminated the enemy threat single-handedly," Simmons replied.

"She saw a lot of hurt that day," Fitz informed them.

"Is that why she's so...?" Skye began.

"Happy?" Simmons segued, handing Fitz one of the small drones, essentially cutting story time short.

Fitz placed the small drone—dwarves, Loki remembered them being called, though he had no idea why—in a small holder connected to the table's monitor. "Particle accelerator data loading." He touched a few places and a holographic image appeared in front of them. Skye looked amazed, but Loki had seen several similar devices on Asgard. Granted, it was quite rare to see something this advanced on Midgard, but still.

He watched as Skye tried to touch one of the holographic parts, getting her hand slapped away. His eyes followed as she left. As soon as she was out the door, he looked at Fitz-Simmons and tsked. "You were doing so well until the horse," he chastised, shaking his head.

X

Loki leaned against the wall, watching the others with interest. As his normal prison was still occupied, he was still under supervision. And since everyone was all gathered together...

"Delusions of being persecuted aren't that uncommon after trauma," Simmons said.

"She's certainly been through her fair share," Ward stated.

"Why demons, though?" Loki asked. "I'd understand if she assumed she was being haunted by the spirits of those who died in the explosion..."

Coulson glared, and Loki knew the agent still wasn't happy he was listening in on the situation, much less trying to be a part of it. Skye, however, decided to answer him. "It's a really church-heavy community. So demons make more sense than—wait, could this actually be demons? Or ghosts?" She looked at him curiously.

"While there are creatures throughout the Nine Realms that humans may see as demons, few know how to cross between realms without the Bifrost or some other transportation that uses a lot of energy. Energy that S.H.I.E.L.D. would no doubt be alerted of," Loki answered. "As for ghosts... also doubtful. I imagine it would take quite a bit of energy just to return to this world for even a short period of time. For a simple accident, I don't think anyone would be quite that angry with her."

Coulson looked at the others—pointedly avoiding Loki. "Look over the accident site," he told them. "If that tragedy gave her powers, we need to shut them down. If it wasn't her fault, even better. But until then, she's a danger to all of us."

With that, the group went their separate ways, Loki deeming to follow Ward. Not usually his first choice, but he needed to talk to May, and to do that, he needed to be somewhere he could catch her whenever she decided to leave Coulson's side. Before he could take a step though, he felt something... off. He couldn't quite place it, but something just didn't feel right. He turned, feeling as though something was there, but when he looked, all he saw was an empty hallway.

X

Loki watched from his seat on the couch as Ward was doing something in the kitchen. All he had to do was wait.

Soon enough, May and Skye both left Coulson's office, Skye heading over to join Loki and Ward while May slipped away, down to the hangar. Loki stood, following her. Before Ward could protest in any way, he called over his shoulder, "Relax, I'll still be with an agent." He didn't hear Ward's reply as he continued to walk.

When he reached the hangar, May was already going at it with a punching bag. He watched for a moment, leaning on the railing of the stairs, but before he could even open his mouth, she spoke. "What do you want, Loki?"

"Who have you told?" he asked.

"Told what?" she asked, not letting up on her assault on the punching bag.

His eyes narrowed. "You know what. After the incident with the staff."

She stopped this time, stabilizing the bag before looking up at him. "Only Coulson." She crossed her arms. "Is that all you wanted?"

He shook his head. "I have one more question," he told her. "What is the story of the Cavalry?"

"That's none of your business," she growled, returning her attention to the bag.

Loki wasn't done yet. "On the contrary," he stated. "If I'm going to be assisting on this team, as I've proved that I can, it's best for me to know all I can about everyone here. Besides, Fitz-Simmons fed me and Skye a ridiculous story including a horse and a pair of M-249s." He paused. "Whatever those are. Nonetheless, I became curious."

May ignored him for a full five minutes, but he simply watched her. He wasn't going to give up so easily.

"You're not going to drop this, are you?" she finally asked.

He smirked. "Now you're getting it."

She looked at him, quirking an eyebrow. "How about this: quid pro quo. You ask me a question, I get to ask you a question. Honest answers. Sound fair?"

Loki hesitated. He could lie through all of this easily, feed her fabricated answers. But she had also seen him at his most vulnerable. He'd revealed something he'd hoped no one would ever learn. After having revealed it to Coulson, of course. May might not know what he meant, but there was a good chance she could find out. And if she suspected he was lying—which she very well might; if anyone on this team could see through his deceptions it would be her—she would shut down this little agreement. And this was the perfect time to gather information on her and the rest of the team that he might not otherwise get the opportunity to learn. He hadn't been lying, he was curious as to the story behind the Cavalry.

"Very well," he finally replied. "However, the first question is mine."

May nodded after a brief moment. "I suppose that's fair."

"Why do they call you the Cavalry?" he asked.

She looked at him with an expression he knew far too well—stony, blank, pushing down all emotions. He'd worn that mask himself all too often. "What did Fitz-Simmons tell you?"

Loki shook his head. "That's not part of the agreement," he told her. "Answering a question with another question seems to defeat the purpose."

She paused for a long moment. "It was like this. The 'Welcome Wagon', Skye wants to call it. A gifted individual, and it went south."

"What happened?"

May shook her head. "My turn. You said that you saw the day you learned you were a monster. What does that mean?"

"Mm, quite a long story," Loki replied, yet again compartmentalizing his emotions. He'd always been quite good at it, but these days it seemed he was becoming an expert.

"We have a few hours," May said plainly.

Loki gave a humorless laugh. "Do you know what Frost Giants are?" Before May call him out on 'replying with a question', he added, "Simply a clarification. Not my next question."

"No," she replied.

"Put simply, Asgardians are taught that Jotunns, otherwise known as Frost Giants, are what you might call the monsters under the bed. The creatures that come to take naughty children away."

"The boogeymen."

Loki nodded. "Yes. The Jotunns once tried to invade Midgard, but Asgard went to war with them and stopped them from doing so, over a thousand years ago." He paused, smirking when he knew she wanted him to continue. "My turn."

"That's not the whole story," May accused.

"I did say it was a long one," he replied. "I'd prefer to tell it in increments. As, it seems, you would, as well. What happened when you went to find this gifted individual?"

"This person had a large group of followers. Worshipers, maybe. They had some people trapped, a girl and some of ours. Someone had to go in and get them out," she informed him.

"That someone was you," Loki stated.

She nodded. "How do you fit in with this war with the Frost Giants?"

"It was the aftermath of the battle," he began. "Odin was wading through Jotunn corpses when he came across a temple. A temple with a single Frost Giant, a runt of a baby, left abandoned to die." He tried not to imagine how that must have looked. The image had tried to paint itself in his mind several times since he'd learned the truth; the cold, dark plains of Jotunnheim, a temple, ruined by the damages of war, with him, a single baby, left surrounded by the bodies of the dead. How pathetic he must have looked to the Allfather's weary eye. "How did you manage to rescue those hostages?"

Loki hadn't thought it possible, but May's expression seemed to grow even colder. "I crossed out the problem," she said plainly. "Got everyone out alive. What happened after Odin took you?"

She hadn't even bothered to ask if he had been that baby. Then again, the answer to that was quite obvious. "I'm not sure whether I shapeshifted with natural abilities to look more like the one who saved me, or if Odin placed a glamour on me, but when he returned with me to Asgard, I looked like all other Asgardian children. He raised me as his child, alongside Thor, leaving me ignorant of my true heritage until I discovered it myself." His grip on the railing tightened slightly at the memory. Thanks to the influence of the staff it was as fresh in his mind as though it had only happened yesterday. Steering the conversation away for the moment, he said, "I imagine the incident is quite a nasty memory. If not, you wouldn't be so hesitant to share it. So why are you back in the field, Agent May? I would have thought you'd want to leave this all behind."

"I did," she told him. "But then Coulson asked."

He studied her for a moment. That wasn't the entire truth, he could tell there was more to the story. Then again, she hadn't really lied, so she hadn't broken the terms of their agreement, either. He'd let it slide, just this once.

"So, how did you discover what you were?"

It took everything he had to not flinch at those words. 'What he was'. A monster. "It began after Thor decided to attack Jotunnheim." He decided to leave out the part involving him sneaking Jotunns into Asgard during Thor's coronation ceremony. "A Frost Giant's touch instills frostbite. I, however, came into contact with one and all that happened was..." His eyes moved to his hand, in plain sight, as it went from the standard pink to a pale blue. Frost began to form on the metal railing, so as soon as he knew May had seen it, he changed his arm back. "As I'm sure you can imagine, I became suspicious."

"But that wasn't real proof," May stated.

"True," Loki replied. He decided to turn his questions in a more general route. "Why are Fitz-Simmons here? They hardly seem trained for the dangers you face."

"They're not," she said. "They never passed their field exams. But Coulson needed them. They were the brightest of their class at the Academy, and we needed more than just brute force."

There it was again, not the whole truth without an actual lie. Just what was it that Agent May was trying to hide?

As though she knew what he was thinking, she added, "Fury thought it would be a good idea, too. Me and Ward, we're more fit for the field. But we need Fitz-Simmons, especially if we're facing something like Centipede. So, how did you end up knowing for sure?"

Loki was quiet for a long moment. Despite every effort, a lump was beginning to form in his throat. Something gripped his heart and pulled, twisted, tore apart everything he tried to hide. He closed his eyes before they could betray his pain in one way or another. He had to calm down. He couldn't show this kind of weakness, not to anyone. Had he been having this conversation a week ago, it would be no problem, he would be fine, but now... he could hear his own words so clearly, feel the cold flow through him as his hands gripped the Casket of Ancient Winters... Feel his whole world unravel around him as he was told everything he knew, his entire life, had been nothing but a lie.

It took a few minutes, but he managed to compose himself. He was grateful that May didn't say anything about it. "Odin took something else that day, at the end of the war. The heart of Jotunnheim, if you will. The Casket of Ancient Winters. When we returned to Asgard after our little venture, I went to the treasure vault. It was all we had of Jotunnheim, all that could... focus my core, I suppose. And when I held it, I saw the truth. I changed. When Odin arrived, knowing something was amiss in the treasure vault, he finally told me. There was no point in hiding it anymore." He thought for a moment, searching for his next question. "Where does Skye fit into this team? You, Ward, and Fitz-Simmons were drafted by Coulson. But she isn't even a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. I remember her being brought on the Bus for interrogation, but what made her different from all the rest?"

"She was helpful," May answered. "She had skills we could use, and Coulson took a liking to her. We have our field agents, we have our science experts, but we didn't have anyone really computer-savvy. Skye managed to hack S.H.I.E.L.D. from a laptop in her van."

"And because of that, you also couldn't risk her being left out in the open, to her own devices, able to hack S.H.I.E.L.D. whenever she wanted again," Loki guessed.

May nodded. "Did Odin tell you why he took you?"

Loki wore a mirthless smile. "He wanted to use me as a way to... bridge the gap between Jotunnheim and Asgard." '... permanent peace...' "I was..." '...stolen relic...' "Laufey's son... Son of the king of Jotunnheim." '... might have use of me...' He didn't speak after that. He was becoming so broken down by the freshness of the memory, by putting his story into spoken word... He didn't trust himself not to break down right then and there, for his carefully crafted mask to shatter and all the feelings he'd spent so long trying to suppress surging forward in a mess he could never allow anyone to see.

He was spared from saying anything else when the power went out. Everything went black for a moment before being lit by a faint red glow.

"Stay here," May told him, moving to the stairs, sliding past him as she went up. "We're going down."

Loki stared at her as she went, eyes stuck on the door even after she was gone. They were going down. They were falling... again.

X

Loki was gripping the railing as the plane shook when Coulson and Simmons made it through the door. He barely registered someone grabbing his wrist, pulling him down the rest of the way, and practically throwing him into one of the seats on the wall, now pulled down. Coulson and Simmons were strapping themselves in, but no matter how much he tried to compose himself, Loki's hands were shaking too much to properly work the straps. He pretended not to noticed as Simmons placed her hands over his, guiding him through it. For the second time today, he was glad no one said anything about his inability to fully keep himself together.

He wished they'd never found that stupid staff.

There was a jolt, signaling they had landed, and Loki forced himself to breathe. They were on solid ground. They had landed safely. The visions of empty space were gone.

He managed to undo the straps and follow Coulson as he and Simmons left, Simmons holding a flashlight.

"Our ear comms are usually relayed through the plane, so here's some hardware," Coulson said as they approached a shelf. May, Ward, and Skye met them there. Coulson handed each of them—including Loki, to the alien's surprise—a small radio. To Loki's further surprise, he removed the key from his pocket and removed the handcuffs. At his confused expression, Coulson said, "We might need all hands on deck for this one."

"Did the girl do this to us, sir?" Ward asked.

Coulson shook his head. "We believe Miss Hutchins is the victim here. Our theories about her powers have been disproven."

"How so?" Loki asked, having somehow forced himself to project some semblance of his normal calm demeanor. He ignored the raised brow he received from May, the only indication anyone gave that they knew his façade was just that. A façade.

"I saw a ghost," Simmons stated quickly. At everyone's look, she sighed. "I... I know how it sounds, but a man attacked me, and then he disappeared."

"Did you get a good look at him?" May asked.

"He dematerialized!" Simmons exclaimed defensively.

"May, run your systems checks," Coulson ordered. "Is the Cage still shielded?"

"Most of the power's dedicated to it," she answered simply.

"This man, or whatever he is, has been tormenting Miss Hutchins," Coulson said. "The Cage might be the one thing protecting her right now. We'll inform her."

"Sir," Skye jumped in. "Can it be me to talk to Hanna? Her life has been turned upside-down, and we stuck her in a nightmare box." Despite himself, Loki found himself smirking slightly at the description. "She thinks she's being punished. Can I please be the one to deliver the good news?"

"That a non-corporeal madman is hunting her?" Ward asked skeptically.

Loki looked from one agent to the next. They seemed a bit preoccupied with finding the answer to this issue, and no one was watching him anymore. He needed time to really clear his head if he was going to be of any use to anyone, and the best way to do that was to be alone. With no one noticing, he slipped away, into the shadows.

X

"Alright. I'll head upstairs, activate the emergency transceiver, and radio HQ. Ward, take a firearm." He nodded toward Simmons. "Escort Fitz-Simmons downstairs, assess the damage, get us up and running."

"Wait," Simmons said suddenly. "Guys, um... where's Fitz?"

Coulson frowned. "Change of plans. Ward, you take Simmons and Loki, find Fitz, then get us up and running."

There was a pause as everyone looked at each other and realized they were down one member.

"Dammit!" Coulson yelled. Their resident alien megalomaniac was gone.

X

Loki was finally starting to feel more stable when something felt off again. From what he'd picked up over the radio, this man was traveling between this world and another, though not by choice. This was similar to the feeling he'd had earlier. Before he could react, something hard met his shoulder, causing him to stumble forward. He turned, seeing what he assumed to be the 'ghost' that had been following Miss Hutchins. Well, if he was solid enough to land a hit on Loki...

He ducked back from the next swing of the wrench before going in low, ramming an elbow into the man's stomach. The man doubled over, but before he could recover, Loki already had his arm in tight hold, ready to dislocate it with ease. Before he could do so, however, the man vanished. Loki glared at the spot in which the man had once been, left hand reaching to touch his injured right shoulder. He'd ignored the pain while fighting the man, but now that that distraction was gone, it was really starting to hit. He moved it experimentally, pleased to discover nothing was broken. He would still heal from that fairly quickly, but with no magic, it would have taken days.

It was going to hurt for quite a while, though.

X

It wasn't long after that that he glanced out the window to see May leaving with the woman. From what he knew, this 'ghost' was after her, and he was of no use to anyone on the Bus. With that thought, he headed for cargo bay, already open. He slipped out silently, following in the direction he'd seen May take the woman.

He caught up with them quickly enough, keeping just out of earshot, measuring his steps carefully and remaining vigilant of his surroundings. He was glad to have a task he could focus on. It was a good way of distracting himself.

When May and Hutchins entered a barn, he made his way around the side before stepping out of the trees. He didn't want to risk getting caught. Whatever plan May had, he found himself trusting her judgment. He wasn't about to be the one to screw this up. Coulson already had enough things to go at him for, and ruining this was not going to be one of them. But if May needed backup... well, it would be a good thing he followed them, then.

When he got to the door, he stood pressed against it, listening.

Hutchins was crying softly. "Then what will you do?" he heard her ask.

"Whatever I have to," May said.

Several minutes passed, and Loki was about to look and see for himself if anything was happening when he heard a strange noise, followed by Hutchins saying, "Tobias? Is that you?"

It was only a few seconds after that before the familiar sound of combat began. Loki turned, still standing to the side, but looking through the open doorway. May was making good work of him... when she could get her hands on him.

Loki really wished he had his magic. He could easily keep this man rooted in their world, stopping him from pulling his little disappearing act.

He almost stepped in when May went down, but stopped himself. A simple hit like that wouldn't keep Melinda May down for long, from what he'd learned about her. And this looked to be a battle she needed to fight on her own. Loki would only step in if there was no other choice.

May pulled Hutchins to the side. "Stay here," she said before the man—Tobias—came at her again. He watched as the support beam broke, and Tobias moved to protect Hutchins. He didn't particularly care about that last point. His eyes were on May as she stood.

"It's okay," May said, pulling Hutchins into an embrace that the latter clearly needed. "Tell him I won't hurt you," she said as she let go.

"Tobias, wait, she's a friend," Hutchins said as Tobias stood. Loki allowed himself to relax when all signs of aggression left Tobias and he looked at Hutchins. He didn't care much for the story between the two of them, but he watched nonetheless. He rolled his eyes at the stupidity of the man's actions. He'd caused several deaths for nothing. Loki found it ridiculous.

"You can't undo what's been done," May was saying when he focused back in. "That will be with you forever. But trying to hold on to this life, clinging to the person you thought you could be... that's Hell. And you're dragging her down with you." Loki looked up curiously as a golden light slowly approached from the other side of the barn. "You have to let go, before my people come and make you do it. If you care about her, and I know you do, let her go."

Loki heard the sound of several footsteps approaching. Glancing over, he saw the others nearing, Coulson looking ready to yell at him. He held up on arm toward them while putting his finger to his lips, eyes darting to the inside of the barn and back with the slight tilt of his head. He dropped his arm when it was clear they understood. The approached the barn, saying nothing.

"Let the girl go, Tobias," May was saying. Tobias reached up and grabbed Hutchins's hand. "Let the girl go," May repeated. After that, the man faded into a strange misty dust.

Skye ran in to comfort Hutchins, and the others entered the barn as well, Coulson more slowly than the rest. Loki didn't move from his spot in the doorway. He watched their interactions, the way they were there for each other, how they worried about each other, and realized that he would never be one of them. It wasn't until that moment that he realized that he wanted to be. He wanted to belong somewhere, for once in his life, but... He was a fool for ever thinking he would be anything other than a misfit. He had nowhere he belonged. In Asgard, he was a monster and a criminal. In Jotunnheim, he was the murderer of their king. And here on Midgard, well... he was the evil, alien would-be king.

After May was finished talking with Coulson, she walked over to Loki. "You followed me," she said.

"I was of no use on the Bus," he replied honestly. "I decided I'd step in if you needed my help. The 'Cavalry's cavalry', you could say. But it appears you didn't need my help after all." He glanced behind him. "Perhaps I should be getting back. I assume you'll be letting Miss Hutchins stay somewhere more comfortable, meaning that I will be sent back to the Cage. So I'd rather go there myself than have someone drag me."

With that, he turned on his heel and left.

X

May watched Loki go. She hadn't expected to learn nearly as much about him as she had today. She hadn't expected him to take her up on her offer, nor did she expect him to be as honest as he was. And she could tell that he was honest. No fabricated story could cause someone as much pain as she'd seen in him. And just now, before he left... he looked vulnerable in a way she'd never seen him before. He seemed... almost upset that she didn't need his help. Thinking back, she realized the only time anyone really interacted with him, save for Skye, and sometimes Fitz-Simmons, was when they needed him for something, or they had nowhere else to put him. From the sound of it, that almost seemed to be exactly how things had been for him growing up.

By no means did she forgive him, but maybe... just maybe, she was starting to understand him.

X

Loki was somewhat surprised to see that no one had taken out the mattress they'd given Hutchins. Sitting on it, he stared at the door, which he'd closed behind him. With this being his prison, he'd rather be locked in of his own volition than have someone else close the door on him. It gave him the thinnest illusion that he had a choice in the matter.

Now that he was alone and unoccupied, he was left to his thoughts once again. He hadn't ever wanted to share as much about himself as he had with Agent May. There were still several things he hadn't told her, such as what happened on the Bifrost, or his time in the void. And if he had any say in the matter, it would stay that way. The idea that someone knew this much about him, made him a bit uncomfortable. Though strangely... not as uncomfortable as he thought it would.

So, the thing with Coulson removing Loki's cuffs was kind of a last-minute addition, because I honestly forgot he was still wearing them. But they needed the be off for certain parts of this chapter, so... yeah.

Anyway, huge thanks to pokemon fan 98, because without her this chapter wouldn't have gone anywhere close to the direction it did, and this is all really important. I didn't expect it to get this heavy, but I think it needed to. Loki's not gonna make any progress unless he does something, so opening up to May about his past, even though he said little about how he felt about the whole thing... well, it's a huge step for him. But pokemon fan 98 was the one to suggest that Loki talk to May to see who she had told, after I was completely stumped on where to go. I know I say this a lot, but this might be one of my favorite chapters so far (but I'll probably end up liking my plans for a later chapter—11, I think—even more).

See ya on the flipside~ Elisa out~