Author's notes: Once again sorry for the delay in updating; been a hectic few months. Thank you to the guest who reviewed the last chapter, I love hearing what people think and I've taken your suggestion to move this story to the Thor section; very helpful! 3

Enjoy!


Chapter ten

As the world falls down

As much as this labyrinth was super fun and all, she really wanted to get out of it. Darcy couldn't stand it at all and it was frustrating her. She couldn't tell how long they had been wandering for and she was starting to wish they could just sit down forever; her feet were killing her. She wasn't hungry yet, but how long would they be walking before she needed food? She bet that Gods could go a long time without food, but she couldn't. Oh shit, did she need to pee? She was sure she needed to pee. Ignore it, ignore it, IGNORE IT! There was no place to pee and she wasn't doing so in some embarrassing way, even worse with Loki around.

"How the hell are we going to find this Gem, Loki? Is there even a way out of here? We better not be trapped, Loki, or I swear to God I will―" Darcy started panicking, before Loki put his hand over her mouth, pulling her close to him.

"Ssh," Loki murmured, looking around. Now that she stopped to listen to her surroundings, she could hear a sound. It sounded like something scuttling across the floors, though she couldn't work out where it was coming from or how far away it was. It would get louder at random moments and she had no idea what it was. It kind of scared her and she leant closer to Loki, her hands unconsciously reaching up to clutch him as she prayed that whatever it was wasn't harmful. From around the corner came none other than little Eryyi running, with something yellow glowing in her mouth. She jumped up onto Darcy's shoulder and settled there. Loki pulled away a little to take the yellow thing out of her mouth.

"The…I cannot believe it. It is the Reality Gem!" Loki said.

"Ya―aaaarrrgh!" Darcy yelled as the ground started shaking. Loki vanished the stone and picked her up bridal style while she squeaked in surprise and he ran through the corridors as the ceiling collapsed in on itself. It was terrifying and she held onto Loki for dear life, clutching so close and tightly that she barely felt the footfalls as he ran. She tried to ignore the scent that slowly took over her senses; the smell of winter, forest and something else. She couldn't place it at all, but it, along with the other scents, overwhelmed her. She peeked at his face and saw that he was completely focussed on getting the three of them out of there. Eryyi sat on her stomach and made no noise, perhaps knowing not to distract Loki from his quest to find an exit. He ran through a door and light blinded them for a few seconds before it cleared along with the quaking of the ground. The door they had come through had disappeared and everything was right again. Loki put her down carefully before looking around as if expecting something else to come out at them. The room looked very similar to the room they had awoken up in from the dream. She really, reallyhoped they could get themselves out of this place now that they had the Gem. Loki obviously felt that they were safe now, because he had brought out the gauntlet and placed the Gem into the slot on the knuckle next to the smallest finger. Again Darcy wondered what his placement of the Gems would say about him. What would he place in the middle? What would be in the slot for the middle finger? They only had those two slots to fill, which was scary. What would he do with them once he had them all? Of course, she followed him and helped him, but it didn't mean she didn't worry as well.

Of course, he had sworn some good oaths and whatnot, but it didn't really stop her from worrying and thinking the worst of him. Could anyone blame her? After all he had done…tsk. She had forgotten. Darcy was so mixed up; so embedded with the simple notion that he had wrecked so much havoc that she failed to remember that he had been tortured to the point of mind control and had been through a lot. It didn't completely excuse him (the New Mexico incident, anyway), but he wasn't quite the monster she and countless others had made him out to be. It would be difficult to get away from that initial thinking. Loki was far more complex than you could ever imagine. Sometimes he acted like an asshole and sometimes he acted in a nice way. Of course, they helped each other throughout this journey, but with her, she helped any way she could even though she never anticipated doing very well. He had more means to do so and a bad reputation that would suggest he wouldn't. Darcy got a headache just thinking about it. She wondered whether it would be inappropriate for her to hug him for saving her life.

"So…what next?" Darcy asked.

"I think we should take a break; I am sure you will need food," Loki said, sitting down on the floor and pulling Darcy down too. She fell half into his lap, though she straightened up quickly. She saw his face and scowled at him. He was smirking.

"Shut up!" Darcy said.

"I did not even speak," Loki said, grinning like the damned Cheshire Cat. She wanted to punch him. Instead, she growled and practically pounced on him, lightly shoving him because, really, she wasn't one for physical violence. Sure, she had her taser, but that was for emergencies (and crazy Gods). Loki laughed, hands clamping over her upper arms as he just smirked at her antics before rolling and pinning her to the floor. Darcy looked up at him with an unimpressed expression.

"Just because we were married in the dream, doesn't mean we're married here. We both know most of it was fabricated and not actually experienced, Loki," Darcy said. "Thank God; childbirth sounds awful. I'll be opting to get as high as possible."

Loki raised an eyebrow at that. "Why would you wish to give birth in a high place?" Loki asked. Darcy laughed.

"High as in choked up on drugs," Darcy said. "Advanced species my ass."

Loki rolled back over with a laugh. "I fear you have become too comfortable with me," Loki said.

"I don't think you fear so much as you are happy. In some way, if only small," Darcy said. Loki raised an eyebrow at her, turning so that he faced her whilst lying on his side.

"Happy? You think I am happy?" Loki asked.

"A little bit happier, at least. I don't know. I'm still trying to work out why I'm here. You could have chosen some friend to help you. Why me? I think you were lonely," Darcy said.

"Now you are just being silly," Loki said, turning to lie on his back again.

"Whatever you say, Loki. Just remember that while I am here willingly now, you are the one who forced me to come with you," Darcy said. "And underneath all that snark, meanness, tough exterior lies a Fairy Princess who is more emotional than a pregnant lady."

Now it was his turn to give her a bored expression. She just grinned in return. He sat up and in a swirl there was a blanket and some food on top of it. She sat back up and started to eat, watching as Eryyi took whatever she wanted and ate it. They must have sat there for about half an hour before Darcy was bored and wanted to get out of here. She looked over at Loki, who looked deep in thought, and poked him.

"What are you thinking about now?" Darcy asked.

"Nothing," Loki said.

"Bullshit. Come on; just be honest with me, alright? I'm not going to mock you," Darcy said. Loki sighed.

"My mind keeps returning to the dream; I…I guess I miss it. It was all I had ever wanted, but some of it would never be and the rest could never be now," Loki said. "I cannot help but wonder if the world would be better if…"

"…You never existed? Yeah, I've been there. I just think the world would just carry on. I haven't done anything spectacular," Darcy said. "But I don't dwell on it."

"I am sure you have those who care for you," Loki said.

"Mmhm, yeah, I do. It's what makes life worth living," Darcy said. Loki went quiet and she looked at him before crawling over and taking his right wrist. "Conjure the gauntlet thing."

"Why?" Loki asked.

"Just do it!" Darcy said. "I'm curious about something." Loki seemed reluctant, but he did as he was asked and her left hand that wasn't holding his wrist touched the yellow Reality Gem.

"What are you doing? These are not for pla―" Loki started.

"Oh, Reality Gem of gem…ness…show us what would have happened if Loki didn't exist," Darcy said.

"What? Darcy, no―"


Darcy and Loki appeared in some place that she certainly didn't recognise. She looked at Loki, who looked around before looking back at her angrily.

"What did you do that for?" He asked.

"You need to know. I know this could backfire and make things worse, but I am pretty sure this is the right thing to do," Darcy said. Loki's face seemed to scrunch up in a silent snarl, but his attention was brought to the arrival of a man who looked much older than Loki striding through the corridor. He didn't see them, which led her to believe that they were invisible. She took Loki's hand and pulled him along, following the man and wondering who it was. He seemed to have lost an eye, which was gross. Oh! Odin! Wow. They reached a large room that had a lounge in it too. She followed him into the bedroom, where a woman was holding a young infant, maybe one year old, who was dozing.

"Odin, you have returned…you are hurt! Come here!" The woman said.

"We won, dear Frigga, that is all that matters. That I have come home alive and able to see you and our son again," Odin said. Awww, baby Thor! How adorable.

"For that, I am glad. We should celebrate. Of course, there will be public celebrations, but I…I would rather like to have another child, Odin. Thor brings me much joy and I want even more; I want him to have a younger brother or sister," Frigga said.

"Of course," Odin smiled.

The scene changed and Frigga lay in her bed, sobbing so much that Darcy was sure that the whole palace could have heard her. There was blood on the sheets and healers by her side trying to soothe her. One of them tried to touch her shoulder, but she hit them away.

"Give him to me," Frigga said.

"Your Maj―" A healer said. Frigga glared at her and the healer scuttled off. Darcy looked up at Loki and saw that his face was full of shock and pain, his own eyes shining. The healer returned to her with a bundle, placing it into her arms and a fresh wave of tears flooded her cheeks as she looked down at the baby.

"Is there anything we can do for you?" A healer asked.

"No…there is nothing anyone can do for me. Nothing will bring my son back to me," Frigga said in a broken voice, clutching what must have been her dead child. A noise caught Darcy's attention and she looked over at a door to the right, where little Thor was peaking around the door, his blue eyes wide in confusion. What must have been his nanny reached him from behind and picked him up, shutting the door. Odin came into the room and joined her side, arm around her as she put her face to the bundle and sobbed. Darcy felt for her; it was a dream of sorts, but Darcy couldn't help the tears that fell down her face. She felt Loki squeeze her hand and looked up at him, seeing the tears there as well. She looked back at his parents and sniffed.

"Our son Balder…I wish I could have shown you the universe, little one," Frigga murmured. Darcy couldn't even comprehend the idea of losing a child. Of course, she still felt sad that Ebony had not been real, but it was just a dream. This was just a dream. Right?

"Did your parents ever have…?" Darcy asked.

"No, no. I once asked whether they were going to have more children, but mother had said she was happy with just two," Loki said.

"This is…so sad," Darcy said.

The scene changed again and this time they saw what was the nearest to a memory montage she would probably ever see. Thor throughout the years, quite similar, she assumed, to what he was like before he was banished to New Mexico. He was quite unbearable, really, and she wasn't sure how he could have been picked for King. Loki seemed to have been the more mature one, too. She looked up at Loki.

"Was this what he was like before?" Darcy asked. Loki grimaced.

"This is far worse," Loki said.

"You must have been his balm," Darcy said.

"Yes, well, it is of no reassurance," Loki said. "It was clearly favouritism that drove Odin to choose one so ill for the throne. I did not want it, but by giving it to Thor when he was clearly not ready…"

Darcy put her hand on his arm. "Can't have been easy," Darcy said. Loki shook his head. They watched Odin suddenly stop and announce that there were Frost Giants in the vault before he and Thor made their way to the vault. The Frost Giants appeared to have been taken care of and they watched Thor get all angry, storming out. Needless to say, it didn't seem like Thor was doing any better having no brother.

"This is going to turn out very badly," Loki said.

And it did.

Darcy actually felt extremely sad even though she knew it wasn't real; she watched for the second time Frigga sobbing. It appeared Thor had just barged straight in there; no speech, nothing and guards were not quick enough to get word to Odin. By the time Odin had arrived, Thor and Fandral had been slain, with Sif and Volstagg barely standing. No one had been able to locate Hogun. Frigga had lost another son and the world was suddenly a colder place. She looked up at Loki and saw sorrow personified; he did care. The guy just wasn't very good at showing it, preferring to hide behind snark and mean comments. She squeezed his hand and the scene seemed to change again. This wasn't like the last dream; this one they merely observed and didn't get to see all of it, just snippets. Heaven forbid how long more would take.

They weren't on Asgard anymore; they were stood upon Stark tower, though she had only seen pictures, watching the sky turning grey with angry blue-black marks pulsing through it. She didn't know why, but it scared her. The sky practically exploded and great big metal things came spiralling down. She knew what they were; she had seen them all over the news. The Chittauri. No Loki here, either. Darcy tried to scream, tried to tell everyone to run but there was no use. Even if she wasn't way up high, they wouldn't hear her. Loki pulled her to his side and the scene blurred, different to usual, showing them London. Chittauri. Blur. Berlin. Chittauri. Blur. Tokyo. Chittauri. Rinse and repeat. It was fucking everywhere, holy shit.

"Why?! What…" Darcy breathed, trying to stop herself hyperventilating.

"They had no other way in, so they used all of their power and might, led by a brutal titan with no sense of mercy, to burst through from the abyss. They will attack until there is nothing left to attack, unless the titan decides otherwise. They will get the tesseract and…" Loki said. "I find it hard to believe that if I did not exist, the world would be a worse place." Something flashed and an army of what appeared to be Asgardians appeared.

"What?!" Darcy said.

"Midgard is under Asgard's protection; this is a fight that Midgard cannot win and undoubtedly the titan would attack Asgard next anyway. This way saves more lives," Loki said. Time flashed forward and the chittauri were dead. So were a lot of humans and even Asgardians. No missile to help them this time. No missiles were fired because there was simply no point. They were back in New York, on the ground and Tony Stark was dead. Bruce Banner and Steve Rogers were alive, probably due to their advanced states, and the two assassins were dead along with most of S.H.I.E.L.D., including Fury and Coulson. Maria Hill had miraculously survived, particularly because she had been working with Steve. She was talking to whoever was left. The city was a state; you could not even recognise it. She had a feeling that everything was broken. Most things beyond repair.

"What's the damage?" Steve Rogers asked. Maria Hill looked like she had seen a ghost. She licked her lips. No one was going to like the answer.

"We're not sure of the exact numbers; we can't even give a rough estimate, but they're using all of the technology we have right now," Maria said. Time seemed to still and her face became more and more ashen. "A third?"

Silence fell over them again before Maria dropped her hand. "At least a third of the world's population has fallen. If not more. A lot of food sources have been damaged or contaminated, Chittauri have fallen in water sources…" Maria said, brushing her hands over her face. It was truly awful.

And it only got worse.

A year later, nothing mattered to anyone ever again.


"Holy shit," Darcy said. "You don't cause Ragglerock, you stop it." They were back in the underground chambers of the library.

"Ragnarök. It is a myth you mortals came up with to liven things up," Loki said, sighing. Really, he should be used to her by now. "Darcy, that is one such reality and it hardly helps any; the future can change on a whim, so chances are, Thor would have lived and everything would have happened accordingly." Darcy rolled her eyes.

"You're impossible," Darcy said. "You just can't see that you're not as bad a person as you make yourself out to be!"

"Oh? I think this dream has made you fond of me," Loki smirked. Darcy glared daggers at him.

"You need to learn to open up and let people in. There's no wonder you and Thor had such a time. Maybe it wasn't all Thor? Maybe you were just plain difficult!" Darcy half-yelled, before storming off.

Why does he have to be so difficult?!


Author's note: Title borrowed from David Bowie's song, obviously!