Author's note: Again, sorry for the hold up. To the guest to reviewed, I'm glad you're enjoying it and thanks for commenting! Thanks to everyone who comments, they make me happy. 3

Enjoy!


Chapter five

Familiar ache

Loki stood up immediately and hurried towards the door, opening it and stepping out to see large chunks of mountain and debris falling down from the ceiling. Dwarves were rushing left and right, heading towards the nearest exits that would lead them out in a state of emergency. Loki turned and saw that Darcy had left the home. He was the only one truly able to fight in this place; how anyone had gotten into this mountain in such a way, was yet to be discovered. The Dwarves were very good at keeping themselves hidden and it was only his connection with them that he knew where they were himself. It irked him that someone had found this place and he felt his magic gather around his arm as he prepared himself for whatever might come down through the ever-widening hole. Some beings he didn't recognise dropped down, all on something like a board. They had pale blueish skin and varied eye colours. They had no hair, though some had intricate tattoos on their heads. Loki threw his arms out in an elaborate way and put up shields so that his friends could be spared. He started throwing his magic and knives at them.

He jumped back as one of them threw something explosive down at him and he pushed Darcy behind him, practically squishing her into the wall.

"Wh-what the hell are they?! Are they after you?" Darcy asked, making no move to get from behind him. Good. Loki didn't care that she assumed it was his fault; it was likely that plenty of others would assume the same thing.

"I doubt it; if they wanted me, there are much better ways they could have tried," Loki said. "Now, do be silent; I am the only one capable of combat in this whole mountain, aside from the murderous fellows who have just invaded this home." Loki moved forward, telling Darcy to stay out of the way as he started summoning his green magic around his arms and shooting it at one of them that landed on the ledge in front of him. There was absolutely no way these beings could be here for anything other than chaos. Loki wanted to know why, but there was simply no use trying to get something out of them. Loki had spent just over a millennia observing people and working out what made them tick; from the good to the bad to the in between. Right now, Loki considered himself an in between. Someone only really out for his own good, for the most part. Honestly, he was still trying to find himself. The blue being flew back into the far wall, dropping down unconscious onto the floor. Huh. That was easy. He hadn't met these beings before, so Loki couldn't really decipher whether they were supposed to be this weak or whether this was a trap. He clenched his teeth and threw knives embedded with his magic to another one, and the fight carried on as such. Chunks of dirt and even bits from individual homes rained down on them here and there as the blue monsters flew around the home and destroyed millennia-old habitats.

Loki felt his heart lurch as he tried his best to combat them, doing well but not well enough; there were far more of them than he had anticipated and he remembered something. A sudden feeling; fleeting and long-forgotten, a moment within the terror he had caused on Midgard when Thor tried to talk him out of his campaign against Midgard. All the destruction, the chaos, the death…all unnecessary. This was a little like that and he needed to make it stop. Without really realising it, the Infinity Gauntlet appeared on his right hand and he felt it clench tightly around his digits. Power and the feeling of invincibility shot through his veins as he rushed forward and punched one of them, pressing them down into the ground and killing them. Him. He looked male. They all did. Loki shot power out of the gauntlet and attacked another being, before he created many clones, all glowing a little in tune with the Tesseract before the whole home was fired up with a mixture of dark red and icy electric blue.

When the light subsided, the whole home was littered with blue bodies. Some still breathing, barely, some as still as stone. Loki looked around, breathing heavily and looking ready to hurt anything else that tried to carry on. He saw Darcy up against the wall where he left her; her hair was dishevelled, but otherwise she was fine. Loki saw her eyes widen when she locked eyes with him and there was fear in her features. He walked towards her, watching as she shrunk a little into the wall. He cast a clone and saw through his eyes; Loki had one dark red/almost black eye and one icy electric blue eye, swirling and glowing. It passed and his green eyes had returned. A side-effect of the gauntlet, no doubt. Jane Foster had become overcome by the Aether, but her mortal body could not handle it. Loki was used to great amounts of power flowing through his veins; magic was a life-force and worked much like the Infinity Gems.

Loki looked back at Darcy, who seemed to be trying to figure him out. He ran a tongue over his lips to rid himself of the dryness before he felt the gauntlet disappear along with the heaviness that came with it. He reached out and put his hands on her upper arms, frowning as she shrunk even more. Was he really that scary? Loki would have thought his actions upon Midgard would bring him such response, but she had become accustomed to his presence before today.

"Darcy…whatever is the matter?" Loki asked. He felt suddenly ill that he was showing something akin to concern for this mortal. No. He needed her. He knew quite well that one of the Stones needed two people to retrieve it. Maybe two of the Stones. Not that he knew where they were, per se, but he did know some were heavily guarded. "All I did was protect―." Smack.

She had slapped him, her eyes focussed and angry. Darcy was breathing deeply and seemed to shake as she did so. Smack. His other cheek stung from the impact of her hand. Just as powerful. Loki found himself on the floor as she had pushed him over and he wondered what had gotten into her all of a sudden.

"You…I knew. I knew…I know! I know what kind of monster you are and yet, just seeing this…seeing you cause all of this…seeing these creatures cause such destruction to what I can only perceive as a peaceful haven…it's New York all over again!" Darcy said, tears in her eyes. "You protectedthis place, sure, but why? Why do you even care when you've destroyed so many lives? Or is it just us weak mortals you have a problem with?" Her lower lip trembled and she dropped to the ground, knees to her chest and face in her hands as she came apart before him. Loki fell back until he was flat, arms and legs almost like a starfish, and he stared up at the ceiling. The silence between them was only punctured by the sounds of the Dwarves around them, shuffling around and letting out cries. Their home was a wreck and the worst part was that none of them were pointing their fingers at him; he who could have easily been the reason the blue freaks had come here. Chances were they had. No matter what he had said…he didn't actually know. Loki was taken out of his thoughts as a piercing scream tore through the air. He jumped up at the same time Darcy did and headed towards the source. A home next to Emyr's; a young woman came out and Loki instantly recognised her as Jödin, Emyr's eldest daughter. She was hysterical and Loki watched as Emyr and other family members rushed inside the house. He followed them in, even though he didn't really feel welcome anymore. Following until they reached a child's bedroom, he saw the source of the grief.

A young girl, no more than twelve-years-old, lay on the ground with her eyes wide open. Dead. Loki had never been susceptible to the cold, but he felt an awful shiver creep up his spine as he swallowed thickly. He heard a gasp next to him and didn't need to look around to know that it was Darcy. Jödin was on her knees, clutching her child to her chest, sobbing her heart out and there was nothing he could do.

"My Nyali; my Nyali," Jödin's voice seemed to carry through the whole mountain and Loki had no words. He stood there, staring at the one little girl who had died. As far as he could tell, no other person had died. It was strange, but Loki couldn't figure out why this had happened. Time seemed to slow and blur as he and Darcy were ushered out of the home and Loki spent some time fixing up the mountain, reinforcing it with strong enchantments and thinking somewhere along the line that he was glad that Darcy wasn't asking him questions; ones he wouldn't have an answer to. Two days passed in a blur of mostly silence and existing, because the death had raised many questions that he couldn't work the answers out to. Was it his fault? Why only Nyali? It had to be planned and specific. But why? Loki stared down at his hand, making a painful fist as he stared at the lie. The disguise; a natural guise or a manufactured guise? Was it Odin's doing or had he somehow created it? The illusion of normalcy. An illusion of grandeur. The mortal Darcy, of a race so short-lived and believed to be lesser by many Aesir was by far less monstrous than he; even just leaving out his past actions. Blue was a most-hated colour. Flashes of icy blue eyes shot through his brain. Agents. Barton. Selvig. Himself. Loki held his head in his hands after that, a headache ailing him as Darcy spoke with Emyr and her husband.

"I've never seen him so…quiet? Sober…I'm not sure what the word is," Darcy said.

"He has been privy to a death here before; on a trip, my parents were killed in a skirmish with vicious marauders. The Loki we knew and loved before…had wanted so much to find a way to bring them back. He is very emotional; that is why he hides behind a mask of cheek and mischief, hiding his more vulnerable side, not wanting to get hurt again. It is, however, inevitable," Emyr murmured. Loki was barely aware of what they were saying.

"All I know him as is the monster who destroyed lives on my planet," Darcy said.

"He was not always like that; I know not what happened to that boy I once knew," Emyr said, tutting.

Before he knew it, Loki was standing behind the circle of Dwarves, all of them lining the spiral paths that led all the way up through the home, facing the middle space. A small boat with a glittering lid floated in the middle of the space on level with Emyr's home. Loki and Darcy stood there as the Dwarves held the funeral for the child who would never grow up. Loki's face was solemn and it made him realise how it must have been for his own mother when he had fallen from Asgard. How it must have been for Thor both times he 'died.' Odin…Loki honestly had no idea. This was what all of those Midgardians must have felt when they said their final goodbyes to those he had caused the deaths of around a year ago. The boat was set aflame and it burnt in a spherical shape. Loki honestly had no idea of how long he stood there, but by the time Darcy finally dragged him back into Emyr's, the Dwarves had all gone into their homes. Emyr tucked him into bed and he ended up sleeping for a long time.

Darcy sat in the lounge with Emyr, not really tired right now. Loki was asleep after so long of just…existing. It scared her a little; seeing someone so cold and ruthless be something else. Protective and just…Darcy didn't know what to do, whether to make an attempt to escape or stick with him. Did he need her for something evil? She sure as hell wouldn't help him; she would sooner kill herself. She sat there on the couch, holding her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them (after making sure this wouldn't be rude to Emyr and her husband, of course). Maybe she could just stay here until she finds a way off of this planet and back to her own. She must have sat there in silence for a long time before she finally looked up at Emyr.

"Is…there a way back to Earth from here? Preferably without getting Loki involved…I'm just wondering. I just…don't know what to do," Darcy said, looking tired, but not feeling like she could sleep right now.

"We do have such a possibility; we dwarves are able to move through the realms on the eve of a Full Moon. We must draw travel circles, etched with runes and those of the place we wish to travel to," Emyr said. "You would, however, have to wait a month; the moon has just passed. There are ways to travel outside of the Full Moon, but you would have to be versed deeply in magic. Dwarves must study magic much longer than the Vanir or Elves to travel without the Full Moon. Magic is not our expertise, you see." Darcy nodded, understanding.

"As I said…I'm just thinking aloud, but thanks. I'll weigh it up," Darcy said, putting her face into her knees.

"How did you come to be with Loki, my child?" Emyr asked. Darcy looked up after a moment.

"You know of the convergence, right?" Darcy asked. Emyr nodded. "I slipped through one of those portals with a…friend, and he got back through, but I didn't and then I got stuck on Svartalfheim. Loki appeared, kinda stopped some elves killing me and…well, it was either be stuck there or go with Loki, where I might or might not end up dead," Darcy said. Emyr stood and walked over to her, sitting next to her and putting a hand on her hand.

"Oh, dear. He will not kill you; I do not feel such emotion when he is with you," Emyr said. "There is something in his heart; some determination. I think he needs company."

"I thought you didn't trust him completely," Darcy asked, remembering her words from a few days ago.

"I have had more time to observe him; that boy has more grief in his heart than just Nyali's death. However, I know not what ails him. He is good at hiding," Emyr said. "Now, you must sleep."

"I'm not sure I can," Darcy said.

"We have a remedy for that," Emyr said.

Loki woke up the next morning and took himself into the lounge, seeing no one around before walking over to the other spare room, opening the door to see Darcy still asleep in there. Footsteps sounded behind him before he felt a rolled-up towel hit him in the side and he turned around to see Emyr.

"Get away from that young girl's room, Loki; you should be ashamed of yourself," Emyr said, pulling him away from the door and shutting it before ushering him towards the lounge. He sat down on the sofa.

"Emyr, I was not doing anything untoward. I was merely seeing if she was still asleep," Loki said.

"And what if she was changing, hm? It is disgraceful in her realm, your realm and this realm. No excuses," Emyr said. Loki just huffed and shrugged. Chances were, Emyr believed the mortal was a maiden, although Loki didn't really know himself. Things were vastly different between Nidavilliren dwarves and Midgardian humans; he wondered if Emyr even knew that. Honestly, he would be surprised if Darcy were still a maiden; she had a beauty he had not seen upon Midgard before. And those breasts…they weren't overly visible underneath her coat, but he had felt them. Loki sat back, waiting for the mortal girl to wake up. They really had to get going before he fell any deeper into this now uncharacteristic gloom. Loki had promised himself not to show his emotions so pathetically and had naturally ended up breaking that. Again.

"What troubles you, Loki?" Emyr asked. Loki turned to her and paused for a few moments, before shaking his head, looking away. He didn't want to get into this. Emyr studied him for a few moments before getting up and going to the kitchen. It was only ten minutes later by the time Darcy finally entered the room. Loki looked at her.

"We will be leaving shortly," Loki said. "After breakfast."

"Where to, Saruman?" Darcy asked, dropping down next to him. Loki raised an eyebrow at her.

"I do believe I have dark hair, not white," Loki replied. Darcy looked at him sharply.

"You've read Lord of the Rings?" Darcy asked.

"I have read a great many books," Loki said.

"Okay, anyway, where are we going next?" Darcy asked.

"Muspelheim," Loki said. "I have no leads, but I want to check out each realm," Loki said. "It is easier to sense the Stones if we are in the vicinity of it."

"The Fire Giant realm, right?" Darcy asked.

"Correct," Loki said. "You are quite knowledgeable."

"I've been following the legends for years; it's pretty interesting to see what's accurate and what isn't," Darcy said. Emyr came in with plates of food for the both of them and silence fell between them as they ate. Once finished, Loki cleaned the plates for Emyr the non-magical way out of respect and walked back towards Darcy.

"It is time we leave. Emyr, thank you for your hospitality and I offer you my sincerest apologies to you and your family. May her soul live on," Loki said, hand over his heart in respect.

"May her soul live on. Thank you, Loki," Emyr said. Loki dropped a small green velvet pouch into her hand; the payment for their stay, before leaving the home with Darcy, after she had made her goodbyes too.