I still felt the burn hours later, and I had washed my vulva area three times. Loki observed my bow-legged walk from the penthouse to his car and didn't bother to hide his smug glee.

Loki had declared that two days in a row riding in the Rabbit was the maximum he could tolerate, so we were taking his Rolls to Derrick's Sanctuary. I had started to put on a loose skirt when getting dressed, but then Loki had pointed out that I might be doing any number of things that could involve getting physical, and a skirt wouldn't be ideal for that. Which was bullshit, he just wanted me to put on pants to maximize my misery.

He waited patiently while I sat very, very carefully in the passenger seat, the crotch of my jeans rubbing against my body creating a whole new level of torture. I swallowed a groan, while Loki was trying his best not to bust out laughing.

And he claimed he wasn't a sadist.

"Do you want me to heal you?" He asked with not-so-genuine sympathy. I growled softly and he grinned. "Perhaps you will remember this the next time you contemplate withholding something from me."

"I didn't even realize what was happening until recently, with that 'reception' Thor threw us at New Asgard. Before that I just thought that it was a quirky angel thing that prevented me getting drunk...I didn't realize alchemy was involved."

"Ah," Loki started the car. "The reception, yes. Everyone else got so inebriated that they fell unconscious where they sat, and you decided to take advantage of the opportunity by picking out all the unconscious Elders and Council members, and sliding their fingers into bowls full of warm water. I believe a few Sharpies were involved. And where did you get the horseshoes?"

"Like you haven't done worse..." I muttered.

"Then the next morning, while everyone else groaned and suffered with their hangovers, there you were, sitting on Valkryie's throne, smugly enjoying a huge breakfast consisting of pancakes, fried potatoes, and bacon, wearing the widest grin I have ever seen on you."

"I think the phrase you're looking for is 'shit-eating'." Loki would never say that. He was alright with my swearing, but he rarely did it himself.

"And, Pet, turning alcohol into water in your mouth? That would be the very definition of a 'quirky angel thing'." He tilted his head slightly as he gazed out the windshield. "Although...the expressions on their faces were rather satisfying to witness."

In other words, he had loved the prank, and I knew he did even while he had been delivering the punishment for that stunt...and it hadn't been much of a punishment. It was really hard to buy that he was mad about it when I could feel how impressed he had been. "I never did tell you that you really shouldn't have bothered with the punishment for that one...the smell of urine in the hall that morning while I was trying to eat was punishment enough." I hadn't even been hungry, I just wanted to rub it in.

Loki managed to keep his eyes on the road but I saw him bite the inside of his cheek. "You mean to tell me that some of them actually..."

"What do you think sticking someone's fingers in a bowl of warm water while they're sleeping is meant to do? It's the oldest slumber party prank in the book."

"You didn't tell me."

I blushed deeply and looked out the side window as I mumbled, "The punishment was too much fun."

Loki did burst out laughing then, and I was impressed he managed to keep the car on the street. I couldn't help but watch closely. Loki was gorgeous all the time, but when he laughed, he was breathtaking. His eyes lit up, his beautiful smile was on display, and he had those little crinkles at the corners of his eyes that I just wanted to lean over and lick. I resisted, but it was hard. So, I went back to gazing out the window.

Then I felt Loki's fingers pop the button on my jeans and unerringly lower the zipper. "Loki!" My head whipped around in a panic.

"Hush. You know no one can see us if I do not wish it," he responded. "I just do not want Derrick questioning why you have a hitch in your gait."

You would think he would know better than to try to bullshit me by now. Just don't want Derrick to see me walking funny, my ass. Loki kept his eyes forward, still driving with one hand, and his other slipped into my panties. My hands gripped the sides of my seat. "And you think him smelling what you've done to me would be any better?" Derrick may not be an angel anymore, but I didn't want to assume that he didn't have the enhanced senses.

"There is a good chance that he might not," Loki replied, proving that his thoughts were running along the same lines. "And if he does, so what?"

I sucked in a breath as his finger grazed my clit, still sensitive from the peppermint oil application of last night, then glided through my slit before slipping inside me. I felt a tingle of magic, and the lingering burn was gone, but it was replaced by his finger curling inside me while his thumb ground the sensitive nub that was now recovering from last night's punishment in circles. I whimpered and flexed my hips, trying to squirm away.

The bastard used magic to keep me pinned to my spot while he finger fucked me.

Even though I knew he was using a cloaking spell so the people in the traffic surrounding us had no idea what was going on, I still felt compelled to stay quiet. I swallowed a moan, but Loki didn't like that. He doubled his efforts, adding a second finger while his thumb increased the pressure and speed.

I came with a shout, his name expelled from my lips. He continued his ministrations, squeezing orgasm after orgasm out of me. I finally began winding down just as he parked near Derrick's shop.

I panted, my hands shaking as I zipped up and straightened myself out. I looked over at Loki, whose eyes were locked on mine as he sucked his fingers one at a time.

"You may thank me later," he remarked, opening his door and getting out.

And in the meantime, I got to do Angel Lessons with a huge mess in my panties. I almost preferred the peppermint burn.

He held my door open, taking my hand as he led me out. I knew he was aroused, so I wasn't surprised when he drew me in for a deep kiss, a very blatant public display of affection that actually sent at least one person walking into a light pole.

I broke the kiss so I wouldn't bite down on Loki's tongue laughing. I clapped a hand over my mouth. It wasn't funny, that person hit their head really hard and it had hurt. But...

"It serves them right," Loki whispered. "They should have been paying more attention to where they were going."

I snorted and hurried towards the shop before I lost it. He was so bad.

I opened the door, with the bell signaling my arrival, ran to the glass counter, and leaned on it as I laughed. I felt Loki's hands on my shoulders, and he rubbed them while pointing out, "I'm surprised you missed the person who nearly drove into the fire hydrant."

"Stop! I'm supposed to be doing serious angel things!" I batted his hands away while I tried to collect myself. "You are a menace."

"Yes, I am, and you love me anyway." Loki took my arm to lead me into the back of the shop.

And he was right. I did love him. Even when he was putting peppermint oil on my privates.

The laughter was punched right out of me however when we went through the broom closet into the heart of the Sanctuary, and I was exposed to the sign of a pair of fiery wings.

They weren't literal fire. The primary feathers were startling shades of scarlet, flaming orange, and bright yellow. They were big, and perfectly framed the slender and shapely body of the woman who bore them. The fiery colors were a perfect contrast to her soft and flawless mocha skin, and brought out her eyes. Continuing the trend of angels having weird eyes, hers were a bright metallic shade of gold, gazing out of a perfectly symmetrical face framed by wild curly black hair. She was dressed in a leather outfit that was fitted more for function than style, and had obviously seen hard times but still worked well for her.

But the wings...one look at them and my vision began to black out. I had Loki's arm in a punishing grip as I starred at them, my head spinning, my breathing becoming labored and harsh...

"Pet!"

"Oh, hell. I should've realized...I saw what those bastards did to her," I heard Derrick's voice, but it seemed to come from far away. My vision was tunneling, and my knees went weak. Something high pitched came out of my throat. It might have been a whine. "Your wings! Put them away!"

The woman looked from Derrick to me, and then her wings vanished. No fanfare, no flash of light. Just gone.

It was several minutes, with Loki's arms petting me and his voice murmuring in my ear, before I was able to calm down and realize that I had ended up on the floor. I was lying on my side, almost in a fetal position. My head and part of my upper body had ended up in Loki's lap, and my entire body was shaking. I was gulping in air, while Derrick and the woman kept their distance.

Oh God, oh God, oh God...I was having flashbacks. I saw those wings and then it was as if I had been tossed back in time, to when I had been a prisoner, being experimented on, tortured by those other winged beings...

"I apologize," the woman was saying. "Derrick informed me of what some of my kind put you through, but I did not fully take into account that seeing angel wings might have triggered a post-traumatic flashback. I should have put mine up the moment Derrick and I sensed your presence inside his ward. I will not make the mistake again."

"Who are you?" Loki almost snarled. His arms were still wrapped around me protectively.

"Loki...Tracy...meet Michael," Derrick introduced her.

That startled me out of my panic attack. This was Michael? She was definitely not what the church envisioned when they commissioned sculptures and other artwork featuring the angel. All of that artwork usually showed a white winged guy with blonde or sometimes red hair beating down a dragon.

"Tracy? That is a strange name for one of our kind," Michael mused.

"Yeah, well, what can you do about it," Derrick shrugged. "But this is a strange situation."

"Indeed," Michael responded as she studied me. The way she looked at me made me feel like a bug on a slide. There was no fascination, no emotion coming off her. She was still, blank, as cold as the angels who had abducted me. It was like talking with a block of concrete. It made my hair stand on end, and Loki tensed in response as well.

Looking at Michael was like looking at an ice sculpture. She was beautiful, but cold, the consummate ice queen. And she was showing no signs of thawing. Was this how they all were? Holy fuck.

"You are correct, she would never have been considered a viable candidate for ascension back in the day before turning mortals was outlawed," Michael continued. "The fact that she is married alone would have been enough to dismiss her."

Loki bristled. "Because it's me."

"No. Because it is an emotional attachment. We do not form emotional attachments, that was one of the main criteria for ascension. The fact that you are an Asgardian and the God of Mischief is irrelevant," Michael disputed. Her eyes were still on me. "I understand that my kind are responsible for a great deal of harm done to you. I apologize."

I sputtered. "You...what?!" She was serious? She was fucking serious?!"

"Listen, we have a lot to do here, and I know you're busy, Michael. I appreciate you taking the time to come down, but..."

"But my presence is causing her distress. Very well, I shall depart without her. It is clear, judging by her response to seeing my wings, that the Silver City would not be the ideal environment for her, so I will leave her in your care for now."

"I beg your pardon?" Loki bristled again. His arms curled even tighter around me.

"If you try to take her, I think you'll have a fight on your hands," Derrick pointed out. "Do you really want a war with Asgard on top of the one you're already waging?"

"No, of course not." Michael tilted her head as she studied Loki and I. "We have never had an angel who was in an emotional entanglement. It will be most curious to see how this proceeds." Her nostrils flared as she sniffed. "Hmm, the entanglement seems to be very much physical as well."

Derrick's nostrils were flaring too, but he just rolled his eyes.

My entire face was on fire and I was really wishing the ground would open up and swallow me whole.

"Until we meet again. Tzadkiel, teach her well." Michael nodded at us and then left the Sanctuary through the door. I could imagine her walking out of the shop, spreading those flame-colored wings, and taking off into the air. I shivered.

"You contacted her and told her about Tracy?!" Loki exploded at Derrick.

"No. Michael came to see me because Lucy is still in a snit over what you did to him, and she wanted me to give her some additional details on what happened. What was I supposed to do, lie to her? Of course, I told Michael about Tracy. She's the Silver City's responsibility, or should be, and I needed to let Michael know that they fucked up. They would have found out sooner or later anyway, especially since apparently Lucy is not over you nearly barbecuing him."

Loki calmed down a little, mostly because his ego was assuaged by the news that the Devil was still licking his wounds from the brief tussle they had. God, I'd never hear the end of it. He only calmed down a little though. "And what was that she said about taking Tracy to the Silver City?!"

"It's standard protocol! She was worried, rightfully so, about having a baby angel running loose in the mortal world. But I explained to her that Tracy is doing alright, and that you and the others had things well in hand..."

"She was speaking of taking my wife away!"

"Calm down! I wouldn't have let her! Even Michael can't do anything in the Sanctuary that I can't shut down...if I had to, I would have restrained her until we talked her out of it!"

"I would have refused anyway," I spoke up. "What the fuck was up with that apology?"

"The angels who abducted you were rebels who had aligned with the Beyonder, but they were still of our kind, and Michael felt that she should offer something..."

"Like an apology? Yeah, that makes things better! I suppose I should invite her over for a sleepover...we can eat s'mores and braid each other's hair..."

"I didn't say that Michael was the most emotionally intelligent individual alive, now did I? I agree that you are owed a lot more than some lame apology, but at the moment Michael is incapable of offering it. All she can do right now is tell the rest of the crowd at the Silver City to leave you alone."

"What? We can expect more of them?!" Loki blurted out.

"No. Michael saw how Tracy went completely off her rocker at the sight of wings. The rest of the hierarchy is going to be curious, but Michael is on her way back to the Silver City to nip that shit in the bud, because the last thing anyone wants is a baby angel lashing out during a PTSD episode while on Earth. She'll order the others to keep their distance, and they'll obey. You don't have to worry about them." Derrick turned towards the kitchen and began pulling mugs out of the cupboard as a kettle on the stove went off. "So, you can keep diddling her in public to your heart's desire. No one else will pick up on it."

My face flamed again. "I told you he'd smell it," I muttered.

Loki gave me a completely unrepentant smirk and a shrug.

Derrick poured the hot water into a teapot, and the air filled with a flowery, earthy aroma. "Have some tea, calm down a little, and then we'll get started. Anything in particular you want to work on?"

"Angelfire," I told him immediately.

Derrick shook his head. "Not happening, love. I can't teach you to control that. No newborn angel has ever been able to control it. It requires a purity of mind and intent that just isn't possible for a newborn to achieve unless under extreme circumstances. They never were able to gain control over it until after they'd been through the Ceremony."

In other words, I was never going to have control over my angelfire, because I was never going to go through that ceremony.

"Will she come to any harm if she proves unable to control it by will?" Loki asked.

Derrick waved it off. "Harm? No. The angelfire is actually the least harmful of her abilities. It's only harmful to evil and those with ill intent. It's also our main weapon against demons. If you're worried about the stuff backfiring on her somehow, you don't need to. Even you and the rest of her friends don't need to worry about it. I'm betting that if she ever did accidentally set any angelfire loose on any of you, the flames just tickled."

"Stephen said that they cured a backache he'd been dealing with for months," I grumbled.

Derrick barked out a laugh. "See? No, mate, she's fine. At least as far as that's concerned."

"So, it doesn't do anything else? I had read that it was a bane against evil and it also healed a friend of ours," Loki said.

"Your Asgardian texts have it about accurate. As I said, it's our main weapon against demons. It burns away evil and corruption, leaving a blessing in its wake. It's also useful against undead. But it isn't easily controlled by those whose minds are clouded by emotion, which is another reason new angels are purged of their emotions."

Loki snorted. "That is not going to happen with my wife."

I should have been annoyed that Loki was speaking for me like that, but since I agreed, I really couldn't complain.

Derrick grinned. "I didn't think so. So, let's move on..."