Disclaimer: I do not own The Avengers or Thor or any other parts of the MCU or any of the characters therein. Nor, sadly, do I make any moneys from the posting of this fanfiction.

Here we go again! Another one shot and look! We have a guest! Enjoy.

…

Doom

Darcy awoke slowly, her head hurting and certain that she hadn't drank that much the night before. They had come back from Asgard two nights before. Darcy had been sure that Jane would be telling everyone that she was the new and, so far, only gatekeeper of Midgard. Jane, as it turned out, was far too busy doing science to be concerned about telling everyone her best friend's business—at least not until a time she wasn't so preoccupied with, you know, the science.

On the second night of her science bender, Darcy thought it might be a good idea to feed her aswell as the rest of her charges. And since she needed some air, she thought going to the small Chinese place down the way wouldn't be that big of a deal.

Apparently it was, as the next thing she knew she was waking up in the middle of what appeared to be a mad scientist's lab with one hell of a headache. And if that weren't enough, whomever had taken her had either broken or just removed her glasses. She ended up having to squint while looking around, which did nothing for her headache.

It took a good five minutes to realize one of the metal thingies that she had been looking at had eyes and that it was staring right back at her.

"Wow," she breathed. "They were right."

"About what, pray tell?" the deep masculine voice of the man who had been staring at her asked.

"When you stare into the abyss, it does stare back," she replied. "Go figure."

He was silent a moment before a deep rumbling laugh echoed through the large room. The man in what she could now see was a green hood and cape along with that metal mask strolled over to where she was tied down.

"You are very odd," he said. "Very unlike what I thought you'd be like."

"Yeah," she sighed. "I get that more than you'd think." Looking around again, she asked, "You wouldn't happen to have my glasses around here, would you? I can't see as much without them."

"You lost them in our struggle," he said casually. "I expect the Avengers will find them any moment now." His eyes went cold as he stared at her. "And you the perfect bait."

"Me? I think not," she replied. "I'm the personal assistant. If you wanted bait, you should have gotten someone with more clout."

"Oh no, little one, I got the perfect individual, seeing as you are the most helpless of the lot. What wouldn't they do to get you back?"

"I don't have a clue," she answered honestly. "You wouldn't happen to have an energy drink around would you?" When all he did was blink at her. "You knocked my head pretty badly and I use sports drinks sometimes to get rid of headaches. It's the caffeine you understand."

"I more than understand," he muttered. "And no I have no energy drinks…"

"Espresso? That'll work too."

"This isn't a café!"

"So you want to hear me bitching and whining until they come to play the hero? That could take hours, you know?"

He growled and muttered, "I can knock you out again."

"Yeah, but what's the point of that? You need me screaming and being all helpless like. You don't want me all, 'Oh God, my head hurts and the big mean man is not giving me coffee!'" she looked to him. "Your rep would take a serious blow with that one."

"How?!" he demanded.

"By putting up with me, the whiner, when all you had to do was give me a fucking espresso so I'd shut up." She looked at him. "That doesn't speak well as to your evilness as much as your wisdom in keeping a smartass quiet."

"An espresso?"

"Yes."

"Just one?"

"Three." His fists balled up. "With Dr. Pepper, please?"

…

Loki had gone to the labs searching out Darcy when he heard it.

"Loki!" Darcy's scream of rage and terror nearly had his heart stopping. He ran to the labs only to find that she wasn't there at all.

"Where is she?!" Loki demanded of them.

"What are you talking about?" Jane asked Loki, who looked like he was about to freak out.

"Darcy," he said, this calling the attention of the others there.

"What are you about?" Thor asked him.

"Didn't you hear it?" he asked him, just as Bucky and Steve raced into the labs.

"Where is she?!" Bucky asked, sounding worried.

"I don't know," Loki told them. "Not here apparently."

"Loki!"

That time Thor did hear her, as well as the super soldiers and Loki as well. Fearful now, he looked towards Thor. "Let me find her!"

"Do it!" Thor told him. "Now!"

"What's going on?" Jane demanded, even as Loki lifted his hand and a ball of energy formed above his palm.

Tony and Clint went running into the labs with Nat on their heels. It was Thor and Bruce that stepped between the agents with their weapons and Loki, who was staring intently at the ball of energy in his hand.

"Something's going on with Darcy," Bruce told them. "She's been yelling I think, but I can't hear her…"

"I can," Thor answered, looking towards Clint. "Loki, her father and the Captain are able to hear her as well."

"Loki!"

"Found her!" He looked up to Thor who nodded and he vanished from sight.

"Friday, could you hear Darcy?"

"Yes, sir, and I have been tracking her down since the second time she called out," he said. "Sir, I do believe that she is at Dr. Doom's laboratory."

"Him again?" Steve looked over to Tony. "What's this like the fifth time this month alone that he's been coming at us?"

"Yeah, but doesn't the Fantastic Four usually handle him?" Bucky was the one to inquire.

"I have a better one for you—why did Darcy call Loki?" Clint asked. "She had a reason above and beyond just needing someone whose mojo can beat Doom's."

"Could it be a trap?" Jane asked them. "She wouldn't want any of you to be hurt or killed because of her. You know it."

…

When Loki arrived it was just in time to catch Darcy, as Doom had tried to throw her out of the building. She had managed to slow herself from even getting as far as the balcony with her fingers digging trenches into the floor of the lab before Loki was able to stop her completely. Pulling away from him, she launched herself at Doom again, slamming her feet into his gut and knocking the wind straight out of him.

Upon realizing the person that had caught her and was currently having trouble seeing was Loki, she let out a hiccupping sob and soon enough she was in his arms.

"He hurt me!" she cried. "And-and he called me a bitch! I'm not a bitch, am I?"

"No, my sweet," he assured her, his red eyes glaring down a staggering Victor Von Doom. "Did you drink the espresso drink as before?"

"Yeah," she told him sniffling. "He told me that there was a trap here and I knew if anyone could get around it, it would be you." She blinked up with tears fresh in her eyes. "My shoulder and back really hurts." She tried to look at her own left shoulder blade area. "Is there still a piece of metal sticking out of it?"

He looked over to where she was trying to check out and sure enough there was a piece of what had to have been the metal restraints he used on her. Letting out a growl, he kissed her forehead and walked her off to the side.

"Stay right here." He checked the place over for a trap. Certainly there had been one, but it was rather mundane compared to many of the ones that Doom had made in the past. Magically he dismantled the trap. The others would be there before too long, so he didn't have much time.

With each step he took towards the other man, he changed into his frost giant form. Blue skin with a raised pattern and enraged blood red eyes came into being. Standing in front of the injured man, he glared at him.

"You thought to take what is mine?" Loki asked, his voice hard and unyielding. "To hurt my magpie?"

Doom's eyes went wide at those words.

"Listen well, mortal. You go near my chaotic little magpie again and there won't be enough of you left to put into a grave." Turning he went back over to Darcy, who was now having trouble breathing as well as standing.

Changing back to his non-Frost Giant appearance, Loki scooped her up just as the Avengers arrived. Bucky went straight over to Darcy, as did Nat and Clint.

Panting Darcy looked towards Clint, breathing, "Papa, it hurts."

"I know, baby," he murmured. "Just hold in there." Clint looked over to Loki. "Get her over to medical right now. We'll be over as quickly as we can. We need to deal with this asshole first."

Loki nodded and vanished from sight with Darcy in his arms.

The Avengers looked over to Dr. Doom nearly as a single unit. It was about this time that Victor realized his monstrous mistake. Miss Lewis may very well be one of the non-combatives in the group, but she was in no way weak. And even though she could hold her own in a fight, this didn't mean that the Avengers wouldn't hunt down any that would mean her harm. As they stepped closer to him, all he could think was one thing.

Well that didn't go as planned.

TBC…

…

Another one shot finished and out to you all! Thank you all for reading, reviewing, and following/favoriting. It's been such fun having you all along for the ride. Thanks again and I hope that you're all having a fab day.