a/n: in response to summerstorm I am going to put a disclaimer on here. There are spoilers in the below review answers, as I really like to keep people informed, and the suspense a bit dampened. I am sorry if that is a problem, just skip past all the bold, and you'll be able to read the chapter without a spoiler. Thank you, by the way, summerstorm for your review, I really appreciated it. :)

Everyone else, beware SPOILERS AHEAD.

Spottedivy: I am terrified of everything that is going to happen over the next few chapters. I swear, it's saddening. It gets worse though, so brace yourself. It's going to be a bumpy ride.

kittysayzmeow: Haha, yeah I guess I forgot to mention it in this story. I guess because I mentioned it in LTA: The Teacher and the Soldier I forgot about this one having that little tidbit. Whoops. Don't worry, you will have your happy ending with minimal character death. :) I promise.

SuzanofSouthern: Hey there :) Again, I apologize for all the cliffhangers, I try to keep them to a minimum, but I usually reach my chapter quota and have to cut it off. Besides, it does make it interesting sometimes. I'm glad it was okay, despite the whole problem of being unable to write. I certainly hope that my chapters will come out better now, and quicker. Already I'm updating according to schedule :D Hooray. As for the fight, they're not going to fight each other really... at least, I hope not. My stories have changed midstream before. Though I do promise epic fight - well as epic as I can do in any regard - when Thanos decides to show his ugly mug. There is a fight coming up though. Thank you for your review, I always love to hear from you :D

jjgoodhope: Hello there and welcome :D I'm so glad you enjoyed the story as much as you did. I am incredibly flattered by how you like my writing, it makes me so very happy. :D I hope to hear from you in the future, as I absolutely love to hear everyone's input. Besides, I feel good that I was your first Fanfiction on Avengers. :P hehe. Enjoy.

DaHybridQueen: Daw, I know. :) I always thought that Loki and Clint would have gotten along if it hadn't been for the mind-control thing. that really was all that was in the way, I think. Besides, they're so much fun as buddies.

Alright ya'll, warning right now. Grab a tissue box, as my beta said that this made her cry, and it made me want to cry. I swear it is necessary, even though it's gonna break everyone's hearts. So here we be.


Clint was reeling from the information which he just found out, knowing now why it was that Lizzie had been so reluctant to share her story with him. "That's horrible..." he said. "But why would she tell you, and leave the rest of us out of it?"

"She didn't want to be thought of any differently." Loki answered. "Let's be honest, shall we – her past is not so different than mine, her crimes quite similar. Would you have treated her with the same affection had you known that she had killed thousands?"

"Probably not..." Clint replied. "That doesn't mean I'm not still basically pissed with her for not telling me. If she had told me herself I might have been more lenient, but as it took us being kidnapped and Alex to come out of the woodwork, I'm less likely to be forgiving."

Loki fixed him with a glare despite the fact they couldn't see each other. "You swore to me that you wouldn't treat her any different."

"And I won't." Clint insisted. "Although, why do you think that she joined up with Alex now?" he asked. "I mean—"

His question was cut off as the door opened and a light turned on, momentarily blinding the two prisoners within. "Well, well, aren't you two absolutely friendly." an all-too-cheery voice said. "Quite the change from wanting him dead, isn't it, Barton?"

"Oh, don't worry, you've topped him in creepy-evilness." Clint snapped. "Say, do you think that we might be able to get a little stretch time? My arms are killing me."
The voice chuckled, and Loki finally was able to open his eyes enough to see who it was. "You're not Shaw... so who are you?"

"Wouldn't you like to know, god of mischief?" the man replied. "But I'm sorry, some secrets have to stay secret."

Loki studied him, his presence seeming very familiar. "Then why are you here?"

"To bring a little companion for you two. After all, it must be frustrating it only being you." the man replied, sticking his head out of the door. "You can bring her in now!" Loki's heart jumped into his throat. It couldn't be Elizabeth could it? Surely she hadn't been caught in whatever she had been trying to do. If it was she he wasn't sure he'd be able to sit back and watch as they did whatever they planned to do with her...

The woman was brought in, and Loki breathed out in relief. It was Pepper, not Elizabeth. "Hello boys." she said tiredly as they sat her down in a spare chair, but didn't tie her. "So they got you too."

"Yeah..." Clint replied vaguely, waiting for their guards to leave so he could question what Pepper knew about what was going on. It was the one thing which neither he nor Loki knew about... what was Lizzie's plan?

"I'll leave this heartfelt reunion, if you don't mind." the strange man chirped. "La'ers!" and with that, he disappeared into thin air, making Loki uneasy. That was no normal man, and that didn't necessarily mean that he had left. However, it seemed that he was, indeed, gone – his presence simply disappeared.

Pepper groaned in pain.

"What have they done to you?" Clint asked.

"Nothing yet." Pepper replied. "Well, nothing much, at any rate. They don't have a laboratory here, so they can't run any tests. However, Alex did allow for his mutants to test and see if they could fight against my chemically altered abilities... and how much damage they could do to me."

"Is that what's planned?" Loki asked. She nodded.

"It's only a matter of getting past Jarvis' security. He wants to record a message for Tony, as it turns out it's Tony he wants." Pepper relayed to them, looking at Loki. "Lizzie's plan failed." she told him.

He clenched his jaw. "What was her plan originally?" he inquired.
Pepper sighed. "She was going to give me to Alex, believing that he would test her by putting her in charge of me. Once she found her daughter, she'd planned on getting us out and killing Alex... that plan was killed the moment Alex clapped eyes on me. He immediately transferred me to the care of two mutants – Lionel and Harvey. They're the he-men of the group." she told them. "I haven't seen Lizzie since the cathedral..."

"Do you know if she's safe?" Loki asked, immediately worried.

"Alex knows that something is up with her, although whether he knows that it's his death she intends or not, I don't know." Pepper replied, her eyes watering. "Oh, Loki... be glad you weren't there."

It was Clint who asked her "Why?"

Pepper closed her eyes. "She was so different. Her eyes, they were cold... dead. Her whole demeanor changed so much that I would have wondered if it were the same person if I hadn't seen it happen myself." she told them, looking at them once more. "It wasn't Lizzie. There was no warmth to her. No life." As her mind brought up the image of Alex kissing her, she went silent. She wouldn't hurt Loki like that... but she did have to warn him. "Loki, I don't know if we'll see her. But if we do... know that Alex is treating her like... a..."

"What?" Loki snapped. "What is he treating her like?"

"Like his property." Pepper answered vaguely. "Like he owns everything about her. Everything." she emphasized, hoping that when the time came he would understand.

Unknown to them, the cheery man had not left the room at all, and was now smiling widely under his disguise of invisibility. With a thought, he vanished from the room, this time for good.


"There has got to be another way to get to those dockyards!" Veronika growled as they were caught in traffic.

"Hey, sweet-cakes, I gave you an option." Tony replied, trying not to think what might be happening to Pepper the longer that they were stuck. "But you guys made sure that I couldn't get to Mark V."

Steve rolled his eyes. "Going in alone isn't the best idea, Stark." he reprimanded, not liking the situation any more than the other occupants of the vehicle. "They'd kill you if they saw you."

Tony huffed, glaring at his comrade. "I wasn't planning on going alone, Captain Puerto Rico."

"Can we leave the jibes until after we take care of Alex?" Steve replied, not liking one bit that Tony had pointed out that little fact of how he only had one star on his suit. Still, this was not his point, he needed to keep Tony on the ground until they all could work as one. "But have we contacted Fury yet?" He asked into the comms that he had in his ear.

"Working on it, Cap." Natasha answered from the other side of the connection. "There seems to be something blocking my signal."

Bella scoffed. "In the middle of New York City?" she asked, her face suddenly turning somber. "Someone must be tracking us."

"What does that mean?" Steve asked, giving Bella a questioning look.

"Mom, do you know the exact location?" Bella ignored Steve.

Veronika looked back at her daughter. "Yes. Why do you ask?"
Bella frowned, turning to Logan who was driving. "Logan, turn off at the next alleyway."

"What are you planning, Bells?" Logan asked, maneuvering the vehicle so that he could do what she wanted.

"Mom, I'm going to need you to do your little... mind-memory-thingy." Bella answered.

Veronika's brows furrowed as she looked at her daughter "Why didn't I think of that?" Veronika asked, knowing exactly what Bella had planned. "Logan, text Farbauti, we're going to need her car to follow us."

"I'm driving, Vera, no can do." Logan said, passing her his phone.

"I'll just tell Natasha." Steve offered, talking to the redhead in the other vehicle via the little mic. "Natasha can you hear me?..."

"Is someone going to tell me what the fuck is going on?" Logan suddenly bellowed, fed up with being out of the mother/daughter loop.

"I'm going to teleport us." Bella answered him. "Remember? Lizzie and I could rip the universe apart with just a thought. Time and space... are we getting through here?"

Logan looked back for a second, turning his eyes once more to the road. "A group of ten though? How can you get away with that?"

"I don't know to be honest, but I think it might work." Bella admitted.

Steve looked over at her. "I thought you knew how to work your power?"
Bella pushed a blonde lock out of her eyes. "When Lizzie started remembering her past, I was left completely out of what was going on. The block was still on my mind, so I had no idea of my past – that is, until a few weeks ago." she told them.

"What do you mean 'a few weeks ago'?" Logan demanded.

"Seanmhathair told me that to understand why my sister was suddenly in danger I needed to know my past... she sent me to see Professor Xavier." Bella told him. "So I'm remembering things bit by bit... but I don't know everything quite yet."

Logan had reached the alleyway and quickly turned into it, turning the car off. "You better know how to get in and out like this." he told her. "Because if anyone winds up stuck behind you'll be dealing with me."

Bella nodded, looking behind her to see whether the others were ready yet... trying very hard to keep her cool. This could end very badly.


"We're moving out now." Alex told Lizzie out of nowhere the moment she stepped into his office.

"Sorry, what?" she asked.

"You heard me, Elizabeth. The Avengers know about our headquarters here, and I'm not ready to deal with them yet..." Alex replied, giving her a look which would make anyone else wither.

Still, she gave him an impudent look. "And how could they possibly know?" she inquired.

"I don't know. The only reason I know is because one of the technicians was able to get audio – not video, unfortunately – of a conversation that was had at the tower. Only the last bit, I'm afraid. Some woman knows, and she told them exactly where we were." Alex explained a little more, moving to look out the window he had installed. "A shame really, I was just getting settled in."

Lizzie rolled her eyes. He always liked being dramatic. "So what do you want me to do?"

"The prisoners we have in the hold, I'd like you to get them prepared to move to our new location." he told her.

"And where is that?" she asked. She'd have to find a way to warn the Avengers as to where they were headed... after all, this was going on for far too long as it was.

Alex turned toward her, a sickeningly sweet smile on his face. "Transportation won't be a problem, if that's what you're worried about. I've already got it arranged." he said. "Go get your job done, we don't have much time."

Nodding, she turned around and headed for the door.

"Elizabeth?"
She turned, her face impassive. "Yes, sir?"

"You may go into that cell I told you about earlier... you need to move them as well." He told her, knowing that her curiosity would lead her in there anyway. Besides, he wanted to see the little reunion between the two lovers. "As a matter of fact, do that cell last, and stay there until I arrive."

Lizzie gave a slight bow of respect – as he had instructed for years – and left the room, heading out to complete her orders.

The strange man who had the ability to disappear suddenly removed his guise, walking up to Alex with a leery smile. "Sending her down there? You don't think she'll get suspicious?"

Alex smirked, looking at the door. "One thing Elizabeth never thinks of: that there might be someone smarter than her." he said, looking at the clock. "She should be slowing time right about now, she will want as much time as possible to get the prisoners out."

"But that cell? I thought you wanted to draw her out a little more before you brought her obvious betrayal to the forefront." the man replied.

"Patience, Gollum." Alex snapped. "Or do you think I don't know what I'm doing?"

The man nicknamed 'Gollum' cowed down, apropos to his name, nodding. "Of course, sir. I'm sure you know the best way to deal with this traitoress." he said.

Alex grinned predatorily, sending Gollum out of the room. It was now only a matter of time, and he always loved playing games.

She had slowed time, and quickly got everyone out of the other cells and send out of the ship. As it turned out, Alex hadn't changed a damn bit. His 'prisoners' consisted of mutants who he had captured, intending to help build his army. There were fifteen total, and now Lizzie was more than curious as to what was in the last cell.

"Thank you, boys, Herr Schmitt gave me orders that I will stay here and wait for him." She told them, her mind registering them as being the same mutants that she once worked with. They exchanged a look, and the larger one gave her a nod, opening the door for her. She entered, completely unknowing as to just who was on the other side – but that didn't last long as she looked up and her eyes widened.

Impossible. Her eyes immediately went to Loki, her persona momentarily dropping as she fought with her heart to simply run to him... she wanted to, she wanted to get him out of there, and to be safe with him once more. His own eyes spoke volumes as he appraised her, the green orbs taking in every piece of leather which comprised her outfit. She felt as if she had betrayed him in some respect, as if she had become the very thing she had tried to get him out of. She took a step toward him, wanting to take the betrayal out of his eyes, to spill her secrets and to beg his forgiveness for abandoning him in the tower after she'd sworn to stay...

"Lizzie?" It was Clint who spoke first, snapping Lizzie out of her stupor. Alex had sent her here, no doubt to test her, and being so she knew she was being watched. She couldn't fail, no matter how she wanted to, and her persona immediately came back to her face, her walls slamming up quickly. Saoirse depended on her, she needed to stay where she was for now. What's more, she couldn't give way to sentiment in any way. She could feel like she was being watched.

"Well, what an interesting surprise." she crooned in a mocking tone. "Alex didn't tell me that you were here."

Loki watched her in shock. She had told him what kind of a person she had been under Alex's influence, but to see her in person, dressed as she was, and talking so differently was more impacting. He saw the initial struggle in her eyes when she stepped into the room. How many hours had it been since he'd held her in his arms, and they'd teased each other? How could she have changed into this so quickly?

"So tell me, Hawk, how did you wind up with your wings clipped?" Elizabeth asked, her words being something which she would have said before, but the meaning behind them had changed. She was meaning to demean him. Her eyes turned once more to Loki, and he saw the woman he'd seen the first day in the library – cold, hard... an ice-queen. There was a determination that nothing would faze her. "And how did the wannabe King of the World end up beside his minion, hmm?" It wasn't as biting, but it stung. "I have my own questions, but I figure you have some as well."

"Lizzie, what's going on?" Pepper asked from her chair, bringing the woman's attention away from the two men.

Elizabeth's eyebrow rose, and she stalked toward Pepper. "What's going on? You're being moved." she said simply. "Alex found out that your loveable billionaire has decided to storm the gates and rescue his princess in distress... however, Alex isn't done playing with you yet, so he's not willing to give up so soon. I'm surprised, however, that he's kept you so long. You must be special."

Phrases like 'Play with you' and 'kept you' hit Loki hard. She treated Pepper as if she didn't care about her, which – from a certain point of view – he understood. She was wanting to get her daughter, she had to put on an act. "Elizabeth..." he called to her, watching as she froze, unknowing of just what his calling to her did. She closed her eyes, slowly turning to face him, a predatory grin on her face.

"Calling me, god of mischief?" she purred, walking toward him. As she stood in front of him, she smirked, placing her hands on her hips. "And what can you want? An explanation perhaps? You want to know why I left?"

"I already know why you left." Loki replied, craning his neck to look up at her. She seemed taller.

"Then what do you want to know?" she asked, wishing that she didn't have to do what she knew she had to... the weight of the guilt already bearing down on her shoulders... and she hadn't even said much yet. She was saved from any other conversation by the door opening, at which point she walked away, turning toward the newcomer. "And what are you doing here, Taylor?"

"Herr Schmidt's technicians have successfully hacked into Tony Stark's AI. He is ready to broadcast a video, now." Taylor replied, motioning to the bag in his hand. Elizabeth looked down at the bag, her eyebrow raised.

"Very well." she said, waving a hand nonchalantly. "Make it quick, we're moving out and I'm not interested in getting caught."

"Can't you just slow time?" Taylor asked.

Elizabeth turned to him, her eyes glinting dangerously. "Considering the Avengers have contacted my sister, and no doubt will use her to their advantage, I will not be able to stop her from coming. Everyone else, yes, but not her." she told him. "So make it quick."

Taylor nodded, pulling the camera out of the bag and setting up.

"Where are we going?" Loki asked, wanting to glean as much as he could from her.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Lizzie countered as she looked at him, not liking the fact that she actually didn't know where they were going. It made her uneasy. She smirked. "Don't worry, Loki, I'm sure Alex has plans for you." They made eye contact, and Loki searched for any sense of the woman who he'd come to know over the last few weeks... but she wasn't there.

Suddenly, Alex was in the room, 'Gollum' at his side. "Ah, Taylor, have you set your cameras up yet?" he asked cheerily, looking at Loki. "How nice to see you, Loki. It's really a shame that I had to tie you up, but after your little show the first day I met you, I'm not interested in repeating it." Lizzie had looked away, focusing on Pepper as Taylor set her up in her chair so as to be sitting up.

"The feeling is mutual, Shaw." Loki replied smoothly. "I don't think we had a chance to really talk when you broke into the Tower."

Alex laughed, his eyes locked onto the Asgardian's. "Too true. Lizzie was my focus, as she was yours as well." he said, looking over at Elizabeth. "She's distracting, isn't she? Can't focus on much when she is around." His tone turned to musing, Lizzie's pulse pounding in her ears. She knew what Alex was doing, and she wanted to kill him for it.

"Perhaps she is." Loki replied, not wanting to give Alex ammunition. "But you have known her longer—"

"That doesn't matter, does it?" Alex interrupted. "You were so obviously enchanted with her from a few weeks of knowing her." He stepped toward her, tilting her head so she was looking at him. "Such beauty... so dangerous..." he trailed off, and Lizzie scoffed.

"We have things to do, Alex." she snapped. "Bella will bring the Avengers at any moment."

Alex tutted. "So impatient, though. It is a weakness of hers, she's so convinced that she has to complete her work that she doesn't think about how not everything is duty." he said, looking at Loki. "Of course, you wouldn't know that."

Loki felt like snarling in possession over Lizzie. How dare Alex touch her? She was his. Still, he watched, completely helpless as Alex moved his hand to Lizzie's neck, his thumb brushing her pulse point. "Naturally." he finally answered the man. "I haven't known her for the amount of time that you have."

"No..." Alex said looking at Lizzie once again. "No you haven't." Suddenly he crashed his lips to Lizzie's, and she froze momentarily, still disgusted by his blatant show of possession... what made it worse was that Loki was watching, and she felt as if she was betraying him by allowing Alex to do this. Yet, she did, forcing herself to pretend as if she was responding, hating herself every second of it.

Clint's eyes widened, and he looked at Loki. It sent chills down his spine as he saw the look in his eyes, the anger and absolute fury glaring daggers at Alex. He momentarily wondered if what Lizzie was doing was going to cause Loki to regress, sending him hurling back into the abyss that Loki had been in the first time Clint had seen him. He looked back at Lizzie, who – although she seemed to be accepting of Alex's advances – he could see was somewhat uncomfortable.

Finally, Alex pulled away, and Lizzie felt disgusted with herself, pulling away from him as quickly as possible and turning her back toward Loki. Her eyes immediately went to the floor, tears threatening to spring forth. How low had she brought herself for the sake of her daughter? She finally turned, but seeing the hardened gaze that Loki fixed her with, she nearly broke. She turned to Alex, the desire to simply end him rising up once more. He was grinning at Loki, as if to say he'd won, and all she wanted to do was stop his heart from beating. She didn't belong to him, and she never would.

"Alright, six year old, you've shown everyone your new toy." She snapped at Alex in irritation. "But I think that I'll head out, after all you don't seem to be taking the threat seriously, and I'm not interested in getting caught after my blatant betrayal."

"Betrayal?" Clint repeated, incredulously, surprised that she didn't seem to be reacting to Alex as he thought she should. She'd nearly killed Johnny Storm for barely touching her, yet she'd allowed Alex to kiss her without even reacting. "I'll say you've betrayed us."

She turned to him, not in the least surprised that he'd said such a thing. "Oh, Clint, don't be so ridiculous. It's not like you're any different – or shall I remind you of your time being brainwashed?"

Clint's jaw clenched. "At least I didn't know any better, being controlled by someone else. You don't have that kind of excuse." he ground out.

"Now, now, children." Alex reprimanded. "Elizabeth may be insolent – which, Elizabeth, I will address you on your earlier comment later – but she is right. We need to get a move on. Taylor, are you ready to go?"

"Yes, boss." Taylor replied, holding the camera up and focusing on Pepper.

"Elizabeth, do disable Agent Barton and Loki's voice boxes. I want complete silence." Alex instructed, and with a nod, she focused on the two men, feeling as if she was slipping deeper and deeper into a hole she had dug for herself. "Good, now Taylor, here's what I want you to do..." He then proceeded to give instructions on what he had planned, intending to use Pepper as a little guinea pig as he caused her pain from the inside, allowing Tony to see as she writhed in pain, the source coming from her own mind. He then proceeded to threaten Tony, and say that all he wanted was to make a deal...

Clint and Loki stared at Lizzie as she allowed it to happen, unknowing that inside her mind was a battle raging, in which Lizzie Donovan conceded control and allowed Anesthesia to rule her head. It was about survival, and while she might lose her friends for the time being, she hoped that – if she made it out of there alive – she would be able to explain it all.

It was the longest five minutes of Lizzie's life, but eventually Pepper's screams stopped, the pain finally causing her to succumb to unconsciousness. For that, Lizzie was grateful, and she breathed a sigh of relief as silence took center frame. "Well, I think that's good, don't you?" Alex said to Taylor. "Take her out of here, Gollum. Take her to our new location."

Nodding once, the strange little man grabbed the redhead, disappearing in a second.

"Now, Taylor, I want you to send that video to Mr. Stark. Make sure that he gets it." he instructed, the mutant leaving the room. "Elizabeth, you can release Barton and Loki now."

"How could you?!" Clint snarled the moment his voice returned. "You were our friend! You were one of us!"

"I was never one of you." Lizzie said in reply, her tone completely calm and emotionless. "As Lizzie Donovan I was the normal human, completely helpless in the face of danger. As Anesthesia the mutant, I am not one of you because of my past. So no, Clint, I am not one of you, nor have I ever been." She paused. "I don't belong anywhere, nor have I ever."

"That's not true." Alex tutted, coming up behind her and wrapping his arms around her middle and looking at Loki over her shoulder as he moved her hair away from her neck and kissed it. "You belong to me."
Lizzie frowned. "Mighty affectionate today, aren't we?" she asked him, pulling out of his grasp. "Deadlines, Alex."

Alex smirked. "Ronnie, Davis, will you come in here please?" The two mutants who stood guard outside walked in, giving every person a once-over. "Take Agent Barton out of here and where the other prisoners are. What has happened to that driver, was he caught?"

"He was not, I'm afraid. We weren't able to track him down, either, sir." Ronnie replied. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry's aren't good enough." Alex said lowly. "But I don't have time to reprimand you."

Ronnie nodded, moving and getting Clint out from the chair, his burly arms keeping Clint in place nonetheless. Once Clint's arms were untied, they were pulled behind his back by the larger mutant, making sure he couldn't try to run away as he was led out of the room.

"Are you not taking Loki?" Lizzie asked, wondering just what Alex had up his sleeve.

Alex looked between the two of them, giving her a meaningful glance. "I'll leave him up to you, he looks like he wants to talk anyway." he said, walking out of the room, a behavior she hadn't expected from him. He had changed since the last time they'd been in each other's company.

Silence reigned for a few moments as Lizzie put time on pause, hoping that Bella wouldn't be able to do anything with the Avengers, all while keeping the ship running at normal speed. She wasn't looking forward to this conversation, though it had mostly to do with the fact that she knew that she was going to have to put the nail in the coffin with Loki, driving him away for good.

"What was that?" Loki finally asked, breaking the silence.

Lizzie spun to face him, her hands clasped behind her back. "What was what?"

"Do not play coy with me, Elizabeth, you know to what I refer." Loki snapped. "You never told me that your relationship with him was such."

"'Such' being that he was my lover?" she asked him. "Yes, I suppose I did leave that out. Why? Are you jealous?" She walked toward him, stopping just in front of him.

"Why would I be jealous?" Loki asked rhetorically. Lizzie tilted her head before she suddenly straddled his lap, her hands reaching up to his shoulders. He tensed, his body enjoying the physical contact more than he wished.

"I don't know..." she said softly, seductively. "But you are."

She finally gave in to her urge and kissed him, wishing him just to understand that this wasn't her, that she was still the woman who had given him her heart, that would give her life if it meant saving his. He responded to her kiss with fervor, thankful that she had finally responded to him in the way he'd wanted, a part of him wanting reassurance that she did care for him, and that it was all an act with Alex. She pulled back first, her forehead resting against his, her eyes closed.

"Look at you..." she finally said, causing him to open his eyes to look at her in questioning. "You actually thought I cared for you."

"What?" he couldn't stop his tongue from betraying his thoughts.

She smirked, her fingers tangling in his hair, pulling his head back slightly. "You thought that I had a heart to give to you." she said, her mouth hovering over his. "Even if I did, what makes you think I'd give it to a monster like you?"

He froze, his blood running cold. She didn't love him after all. It had all been a lie, one large lie which she'd done for whatever purpose, and one which he had fallen into. She kissed him again, but this time he didn't respond, his fury beginning to build. She was like everyone else, like Odin who had abandoned him, and Thor who had tossed him into the abyss. It had all been a lie, and he began to hate her for it. She had used him...

"What's the matter? Silver tongue turned to lead?" She taunted, craving the warmth which he once had for her, already feeling the chill of his demeanor. This was her plan, but why did she feel so much pain? She knew her words would cut him, wound him deeply... but it was for his own good. Lizzie had seen what Alex had done to Scott, she couldn't risk the same happening to Loki. It would break her. She climbed off Loki's lap, knowing that if she stayed that she would give in and apologize, begging his forgiveness. "Davis?" she called to the door.

The burly mutant returned into the room, his eyes fixed on Loki as she gave him instructions in German. Loki could feel her power come over him as Davis freed him from the chair, lifting him. "My congratulations." Loki sneered at Lizzie coldly. "You are one of the few who have been able to deceive me so well. To do so to me is an accomplishment indeed."

Lizzie smirked, knowing the meaning behind his words. "That was the intention, god of mischief." she said, somewhat pleased with herself that she had deceived him – even though he didn't truly understand which part had been the deceitful. He was marched out of the room within seconds, but Lizzie stayed in the room, her eyes scanning the emptiness – or lack thereof.

With a cry, 'Gollum' suddenly appeared out of thin air, clutching his throat as he struggled to breathe, his gray eyes looking at Lizzie in terror as her black eyes narrowed on him. Anesthesia stalked toward him, clucking her tongue in disapproval as he fell to his knees.

"Naughty, naughty, boy. Whatever will I do with you?"


...feels...so...many...feeeeeels... I'm sorry once again.