"Adara," My dad said as he watched me work at my desk.

"Father," I countered.

"Do you want to explain to me how you were able to lose control of your powers? Have you been taking the medication that your mother provides? You don't want to have a repeat of the last time you lost control." There were many things I would rather do than get scolded at the age of 23 by my father. I really didn't want to get scolded while I was at work either. But the fact that he brought up the last time I lost control made it even worse.

I sighed, "I do. You know I got some more from your wife. I lost control because I haven't used my powers since the incident, and that's probably why."

"I don't think you should be working with Loki. He's dangerous, and things could go badly."

"And by badly, you mean that you are worried about me losing complete control."

"That is not what I mean, Adara."

I scoffed, "Yes, it is. That is all you and your wife have worried about since the day I was born and found out I had these stupid powers. Well, guess what? I didn't ask for this. I didn't ask to be born. I didn't ask to be the monster everyone here fears. I know everyone here at S.H.I.E.L.D. is keeping a close eye on me, including my own best friend." I felt my body temperature rising. I knew I had to calm down, but I didn't know how to be with my dad around.

"Ara," I heard a small voice call. I looked over to see Toby running into my work area with Jason following after him. I felt some of my anger vanish. I didn't want Toby to see me using my powers. He didn't know about them. It was for his safety. "Jazzy gave me cookies."

"Did you tell Jason thank you? And more importantly, did you bring me one?" I asked Toby as he sat on my lap. He nodded before handing me a cookie. I gladly accepted it and started munching on it. I knew I trained both Jason and Toby well.

"Dude, what did I tell you about calling me Jazzy?" Jason whined like the overgrown child he is.

"But I don't like your name. Jazzy is much more fun sounding," Toby countered, causing me to laugh.

Jason let out a sigh of defeat before asking me, "Are you going to work on your other project today?"

"Maybe. I haven't decided," I said as I continued to type on my computer. I knew I should go, but I also thought that a few days between meetings would help cool everything down for not only Loki and I, but also everyone else as well. I didn't want to "accidentally" destroy the building.

"She shouldn't," My dad piped up. Of course, he would have an opinion. He has always had an opinion on everything I have done. Most of the time, his opinions conflicted with my opinions, so it always caused a debate between us. Nothing I did was good enough for either one of my parents.

"I wasn't asking you, Daniel," Jason replied in a cold tone. My dad glared at Jason, but Jason stood his ground by glaring back. Men…

I cut in before they started tearing one another apart, "I was leaning towards not today. I don't want another accident to happen, and it would give everyone a chance to forget about the chaos. Leave Loki to his own thoughts while I get my actual project done."

Jason nodded before heading off to do who knows what. My dad grabbed Toby off of my lap causing Tobey to throw a small fit. Not that I blame the kid. As his older sister, I should spend more time with him, but spending more time with him meant that I had to spend more time with my parents. It was for the best that stayed away from Toby, not only because of my parents and I butting heads, but his own safety. I didn't want to lose control in front of him.

After everyone left, I started diving into more research of Norse mythology. If I understood those stories, maybe I could understand Loki a little better before I had to talk to him face to face again. I wanted to know all of his stories, but I didn't want to bother Thor and I sure as hell couldn't ask Loki himself. I don't think Loki would have told me the truth.

Diving head deep down the rabbit hole of Norse mythology, I focused on the stories that centered around Loki. Some of them were well known such as when he cut Lady Sif's hair or when he turned into a mare and got pregnant or when Loki and Thor tricked Thrym into believing Thor was Freyja. Stories that get used when talking about the Norse gods, especially since Loki was well known for his amusing tricks.

However, what I was finding didn't help much. All these stories just told me what I already know. Loki does things for his own amusement. Most of his mischief only benefits himself and hardly helps anyone else around him. From time to time what he was doing benefited others around him, but most of the time he was just causing trouble.

After what felt like hours of research, there was a knock at the office door. I looked up to see Thor and Loki entering my workspace. I had no idea why they were here. I wasn't planning on seeing Loki until the next day at the earliest.

"What are you guys doing here?" I asked while trying to focus on my PhD project instead of anything related to Loki anymore. I was trying to pay as little attention to the mischievous god that was currently watching my every movement. "I told Jason that I wasn't going to work with Loki today. I have other stuff I need to get done."

"Loki was asking to get out of his cell, and I wanted to make sure you were okay after the incident yesterday," Thor answered. I looked up and studied the two gods in front of me. What Thor said wasn't the whole truth. I could tell by the way Loki was observing me from the second he stepped into my workspace.

I smiled while saying, "I'm fine. I just have a couple of bruises, but those will most likely heal in a few days. Nothing I couldn't handle. Thank you for checking though." I turned my attention back to my project.

"Are you sure about that?" Loki said with a dark look in his eyes. I couldn't quite explain it, but it told me that he was seeing through my lie.

"It's none of your business if I'm sure about it or not, Loki. All you are is a prisoner that I've been asked to communicate with. Whatever my wellbeing is is none of your concern."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't trust you with a 10-foot pole, you overgrown asparagus," I snapped, causing Thor to belt out in laughter.

Loki smirked, "You should be careful of the people around you that you supposedly trust, Adara. You never know when someone you care for will turn on you."

"Thanks for the advice," I scoffed. I wasn't interested in what he had to say anymore. "Now if you two have all the information you were looking for, I have work to do."

Thor grabbed Loki by the shoulder and dragged him out of my work area. Once again, Loki's words were echoing in my ear.

Author's Note: I've come back from the dead. Actually, between classes and work, when I have free time writing is usually the last thing on my mind, but I will try to be better as in the future!