Hurray for fast update! Well, fast in comparison to how I usually update :))

Thank you so much for all your thoughtful reviews and lovely encouragements, can't get enough of them!

Thanks to the anonymous reviewers AiH (thanks! and more you shall have:)), Guest, wineandwhiskey (thank you! I'm happy you like Darcy's courageousness, it's one of the best things about her, and I'm glad her inner conflict is showing), Marie2233 (thank you! i appreciate it!), Nettles (well, it's mostly the pain that sucks for him, not the radiation itself, because he's a more powerful form of energy, or at least that's how my weird logic works :)) as for Loki and Darcy, it's almost inevitable that a partnership will emerge).

I'm a little nervous about this chapter because it's got some introduction of new stuff and my knowledge of the (Avengers) comics is limited, so I hope I do them justice!

Anyway, please enjoy!

Chapter 10: I don't intend to die here

"You are not coming with me to the other sites."

The way Loki had said it, it did not sound like an option or a suggestion. He was being very firm about it. And Darcy was reluctant to obey.

"I won't draw attention," she told him as they walked towards the exit of the collapsing resort.

The powerful magic Loki had used to absorb the radiation was slowly fading away but she could still see small glimmers of brilliant blue light floating in the air.

"Yes, you will. You will distract me and get yourself caught."

"But I didn't distract you now, did I?"

Loki sighed. "You could have. And you almost did. This is not playing around, Agent Darcy."

"I'm not playing around, I'm serious –"

"And I am being just as serious when I tell you I can't afford to look after a mortal girl while I'm engaged with high levels of destructive magic."

Darcy made to object again, but he didn't let her speak.

"Because then my job wouldn't just be absorbing radiation anymore. It would be that and making sure none of it affects you."

Darcy stared at him in surprise.

"Oh…I see," she replied awkwardly. Somehow, it had never crossed her mind that she might be an item of concern for him. It still didn't.

"The suit should be able to protect me, though –"

"It's not 100% safe. Not at this range. And if you die here, Darcy Lewis, there's a strong possibility I will be blamed for it. After all, I have antecedents."

Darcy blinked. He was basically telling her he had killed before, but it sounded as if he was telling her about the weather.

More than that, the reminder of who he was, was like a bucket of cold water on her back. He could do unspeakable things, but he could also do beautiful things, and sometimes there was no difference between the two.

And all he really cared about was not taking the blame when it got ugly.

She shook her head.

"I don't intend to die here."

Loki nodded. "Then go about your business and I'll go about mine."

Darcy sighed. She took out her molecular scanner.

"Then you should take this. Use it on yourself. It will help with the pain."

Loki stared at her gloved hand with an unreadable expression on his face. He seemed about to take it from her, when, in a gesture that startled her, he closed her fingers into a fist.

"No. You shouldn't lose it. And I don't need it."

He seemed to hesitate as he uttered the last words, but then he was looking into her eyes and she lost her train of thought.

"Agent Darcy. I appreciate what you did back there."

"Oh. That was nothing. I was just doing my job."

She was glad he couldn't see her blush through her mask.

"You should know, however, that this doesn't exempt you from those six minutes," he said with a smirk.

With that, he turned around and walked away from her without another word.

Darcy was left standing there, looking like an idiot, mouth open and molecular scanner dangling from her fingers.

Jerk.

Only when she got back on the shore did Darcy realize just how tired she actually was. She barely dragged her body in the heavy suit, feeling sweaty, hungry and nauseous all at once.

The past couple of hours had practically drained her and she hadn't even noticed.

She couldn't even believe everything had happened in the space of one day.

She had practically witnessed the impossible. Her mind still trailed off at the memory of Loki's deep red eyes and scaly blue skin. The horns she didn't like to think about.

But she couldn't deny that his godly form was spectacular. And to think she had thought the most he could do was make his eyes glow green and stand a little taller!

Darcy quickly dodged an incoming gaggle of agents.

They were still swarming around, looking busy and wielding high-tech equipment, while trying to work around the fact that they were just as uncomfortable as she was in those heavy suits. No one looked happy. Not even Daniel Steele.

He was no longer making jokes with the suck-ups around him. He seemed concerned for once, and he even looked tense. Darcy was curious what had brought on this sudden change.

It didn't take long to find out.

"We don't want to jump to conclusions, of course, because this could very well be the work of copycat. Sometimes, terrorists have a sick sense of humor. But we should keep the possibility in mind," he was telling to a group of agents standing in front of the main service tent.

"Sir, are we to infer the W.S. stand for the Winter Soldier?" one of the agents asked.

Steele frowned, as if the question was only a nuisance to him.

"Call him whatever you want. We came here to do a job. Be on the lookout, but don't expect a KGB agent to come flying down from the sky."

Darcy's head was swimming with so many foreign notions she had to stop and take a deep breath.

Winter Soldier? KGB?

This trip had suddenly become far more complicated than she had expected. Well, this was S.H.I.E.L.D. It was bound to get crazy.

I need to find out what the hell is going on.

The problem was, she was invisible to everyone around her, so getting answers would prove difficult. She hoped her badge could provide her with enough information.

When the agents dispersed later, she saw what they had gathered around.

It was Captain America's Shield.

Or at least, a pretty good copy. Smaller, more faded and worn-out, but still pretty intimidating to look at.

Only, it was smeared with black paint on the front and the letters W.S. were clearly visible on the white, red and blue.

So, whoever this Winter Soldier was, he was messing with one of the Avengers.

Baaad idea, Darcy thought, looking at the ominous shield.

One by one, she could see at least half a dozen agents getting undressed and prepared to drive back to the warehouses. She supposed they were being sent back to report to S.H.I.E.L.D. She envied them only a little.

Darcy turned away from the crowds and walked along the beach, browsing through her badge for information on the Winter Soldier.

Much to her dismay, there was actually very little data on him. And several files were locked.

'You are not allowed to view this content.'

Darcy had never come across a locked file before. She had thought the badge would be a free pass into S.H.I.E.L.D's archives, but she realized now she had been wrong. Of course S.H.I.E.L.D would not be so reckless as to leave such information lying around. Still, they were agents (well, she was half-posing as one, but that didn't matter); shouldn't they, of all people, be able to have access to this type of thing?

The badge told her little else about the Winter Soldier that she had not inferred from Steele. He was a high-profile assassin and (ex) KGB agent who also dabbled in terrorism and warfare.

Well, shit.

"So, the guy planted the bombs and left his signature behind. He wants to be found," she muttered to herself, wondering if she should be running for the hills at this point.

She felt so far away from her ordinary, boring life where her biggest dilemma was an unfinished academic career. Ever since she had started working for S.H.I.E.L.D that life had been slowly fading, but now it was becoming more obvious than ever she was way in over her head.

In the sudden dizziness that came with panic, she almost laughed because she found she was relieved they had Loki on their side. Better a god who had tried to enslave humanity than a KGB terrorist. That made sense.

Speak of the devil, she thought as he saw the God of Mischief being walked out of a building some hundred feet away.

Darcy wondered if she should tell him about the new development. She didn't think anyone else would bother to inform him. He might shed some light on the problem, after all.

She was about to make her way towards him, when someone cried out from behind her. Several voices rose at the same time.

She managed to catch what the agents were saying.

"There's been an attack in Philadelphia! Explosives again! Hundreds of deaths have been confirmed!"

Darcy turned as white as a sheet.

"Code 56! Code 56! Attack on the LB!" some were shouting.

She had no idea what code 56 or LB stood for, but she gathered it was extremely bad news.

There was a general chaos all around her as agents dropped whatever they were doing and prepared for the new state of emergency. They had taken out their weapons and were getting ready to evacuate soon. The harbor patrols' alarms were running off and the ringing, coupled with the urgent shouting made her want to throw up.

She looked towards Loki and saw that he was looking at her too.

With a small jerk of his head, he pointed towards the path uphill that led to their vehicles, and Loki's glass case.

She nodded her head towards him in understanding and rushed towards the path.

She managed to unzip her suit and leave it behind one of the tents as she now, literally, ran for the hills.

Darcy stood waiting by the glass case and watched as five, six, seven, and then eight go-carts left the premises. Still no sign of Loki.

How would he be carried back if everyone was leaving?

Only four carts were left now and they were preparing to leave too.

She was getting jittery. Something was wrong, besides the fact that there had been another attack.

Deciding she'd better see what was causing this delay, Darcy gritted her teeth and climbed back down towards the beach.

She was nearing the shore when she saw the two helicopters flying up above her. They were definitely S.H.I.E.L.D's. She suddenly understood they had come for Loki.

Of course! He has to get to Philadelphia ASAP! No time for stops on the way!

The problem was, she had to catch a seat on one of them if she wanted to leave this island. And she had to make a run for it, again.

Considering how exhausted she was at the moment, she would have rather stayed on Keewaydin forever, but she knew she had to pull herself together.

Safe to say, she already felt as if she had run half a continent.

She stood at the top of the hill and saw that one of the helicopters was already nearing the ground.

Fuuu –

She jumped down and sprinted towards the beach.

"What are you waiting for, Laufeyson? A special invitation? Get inside!"

Loki still stubbornly scanned the area, one foot ledged on the helicopter stair. He saw no sign of Darcy Lewis, which could translate into both good and bad news.

"Laufeyson!" the agent shouted again and pushed him inside the helicopter.

Loki tried to resist, but his strength without magic was already low after three radiation absorptions. He craned his neck to take one last look at the island, but the agent shut the door impatiently.

"Jesus, Laufeyson! We have a crisis here!"

Loki sat back in his chair, looking glum. He couldn't be bothered to care about some fresh havoc in Pennsylvania, but he was feeling alarmingly concerned about whether Darcy Lewis had managed to find a ride with the agents or was still somehow down there, waving her arms spasmodically at their helicopter.

"Donovan here," the agent spoke into his radio transceiver. "Yes, area has been cleaned up. No agents left on my side. Yours? Okay. We're heading towards Liberty Bell. Will maintain contact. Clear."

Loki shifted in his seat.

"Are you quite sure there was no one left behind?"

Donovan stared up at him in surprise. Laufeyson was quiet as a rule and only talked when pressed to. This sudden intervention was baffling.

Donovan chuckled nervously. "I know how to do my job, thanks, Laufeyson."

"I am merely asking."

"Why are you asking?"

Loki lowered his head in anger. It was at moments like these he really missed magic and the ability to get anything out of a person with a mere glance.

"Well," Donovan continued, misinterpreting Loki's gesture for one of obedience, "let's hope for their sake there is no one left, since Keewaydin is now on official lockdown for the next 72 hours."

Loki frowned. "That sounds ominous."

"Yeah, no one goes in, no one goes out. Harbor patrols will scout the area for intruders. It's the drill."

Loki felt a sheen of sweat trickling down his forehead.

She must have left with the agents. She must have.

If she hadn't, there would be an invisible Darcy Lewis running around a deserted island, unable to get back home for at least three days.

But she wouldn't be invisible forever. The spell was going to wear off in a couple of hours. Magic had its limits. And then – and then he wouldn't be able to make her invisible anymore without her consent.

Loki swallowed thickly.

If she became visible again, the harbor patrol would find her and they would probably shoot at will at any foreign body, civilian or not –

He shook his head, breathing in. He couldn't think like that. He couldn't.

"You all right, Laufeyson?"

Loki looked up, as if shaken from a trance.

What was it to him, anyway, what this reckless mortal did? It had been her fault from the start. She had followed him on the helicopter when told not to. She had insisted on coming into a war zone. She had practically bargained with him to make her invisible. And she had run straight into a radiation-hazard because – because she thought it was her job (not because of him, no). Well, now she had to pay the consequences.

So why did he suddenly feel empty and hollow?

I don't intend to die here, she had said.

No, she must have gone on with the agents, he thought, in order to reassure himself. But the hollow feeling in his chest remained and grew as they flew further from the island.