His Pet had far fewer bad days now than before six months ago, but she still had them.

Her latest trip with Stephen Strange had hit her. Hard. He could tell, even though she insisted that she was fine. Strange had taken her with him to help out with dozens of trauma victims who had recently been freed from a human trafficking ring. Her empathy had been an asset in helping the counselors to reach them, but at a cost. Being around survivors of the worst, most depraved nightmares humanity had to offer had struck Tracy a little too close to home.

She didn't remember a lot of what had happened immediately after she had arrived in this universe, but Loki had found out through reading her files and watching the footage of her. That was something he was never going to tell her, because he knew she wouldn't want him to see her that way. He knew that after the initial violent outbursts that occurred daily that her trauma had caused her to shut down. He knew that their encounter with the Dora Milaje when they were searching for Steve last year was not the first time the Wakandans had encountered her. T'Challa had been at Avengers HQ for a couple of days while she was there, after her violent outbursts started to occur only every other day rather than every couple of hours. The King of Wakanda had taken one look at her and sent a couple of women from his kingdom to stay with the Avengers for a few weeks to help take care of Tracy since at the time all the women of the Avengers had been out of commission...Carol was in a coma, Natasha was dead—or, rather, in stasis on Vormir, Wanda had run away, and any other women they knew were far too busy to help.

She had needed a lot of caring, and much of what she needed assistance with was very personal, hence why they had wanted women around to help her rather than the men doing it. Her mind had been so torn up that she had almost been reduced to being an infant mentally. She had to relearn how to groom and dress herself. She had needed help bathing, and she had to be sedated for that or she would have killed the two Wakandan women who aided her. She had to relearn how to touch and hold things, how to do even simple tasks such as turning a water faucet. Steve, Bucky, Stephen, and Bruce even had to help her learn how to speak all over. She had been feral in almost every sense of the word, and it was very hard to watch the footage of her in that condition. Loki could only imagine how heart-breaking it had been in person.

Loki was still angry at Thor sometimes for not telling him about her during the first few months she was here. But Loki wasn't an Avenger, and Tracy was considered Avengers business and anything about her was told to others on a need-to-know basis. If Thor had just mentioned her to him, Loki would have been curious enough to come over and see her for himself. Then he would've taken care of her. There was no question in his mind about that.

She was his. Had always been meant to be his. He knew that to the bottom of his soul. All that time he spent farting around in New Asgard and she had been over here, frightened, lost, confused, needing help with the most basic things. That first meeting with her had been pure chance. She had come into work earlier than she normally had when he had stepped into Avengers HQ. Had she come at her normal time, Loki would have missed her and it might have been months before he was back at HQ. By then she might have been in Kamar Taj, as Stephen had been on the brink of taking her there since her powers were growing and he was starting to feel she needed to learn to control them in more secure surroundings.

But the Norns had made it so things worked out as they did and Loki was grateful for it. What he was not grateful for was his Pet pretending she was alright when clearly her encounter with those survivors had reminded her of herself on some primitive level. She may not consciously remember everything that occurred during those first several weeks, but some part of her did.

He didn't want to punish her. That was not a solution and if anything it might make matters worse. What she needed was a way to purge all of that messy stew of emotion she was experiencing, her own as well as what she had picked up from those women.

After thinking about it, Loki came up with a plan. A plan that, when implemented, would turn out to be either one of his more brilliant schemes or the stupidest thing he'd ever come up with.

He wouldn't have dared attempt something like this with her six months ago, or even three months. He was risking a lot just contemplating this now.

She stepped into their penthouse to find it dark. Loki knew that she had spent the day with Rogers and Barnes, who had noticed something was wrong despite her attempts to hide it and taken her to a movie and to lunch to cheer her up and try to coax her to talk. He knew, because Rogers and Barnes told him. The fact that those two not only noticed but came to him with their concerns meant that his Pet was hurting even more than he thought.

That was going to stop. Tonight.

A flick of his finger ignited dozens of candles situated around the great room of their home. Tracy blinked as she looked around, and arched a brow when her eyes settled on him lounging on the sofa. He was indulging in the truffles she had won from Stark on a bet.

"What's...going on?" She asked slowly. "And why are you sitting around all blue? You never hang out casually in your true form." That last was said with a bite of irritation. True, Loki almost never let himself revert to his true face. It was difficult for him still to really come to terms with it.

A lifetime of being taught that frost giants were the enemy, monsters to be feared, did not get brushed aside overnight, especially when that lifetime spanned a millennium plus a couple of centuries.

His Pet thought he was beautiful in this form. That's where the irritation came from. She was also thrown off seeing him like this.

Good.

He licked his fingers, being deliberately provocative as he slipped his thumb in his mouth to get the last crumbs of chocolate off while watching her. Her eyes were locked on his lips. "It is a warm night. Rather than put more strain on the conditioner of air and make more work for the repairman, I switched to this body in order to cool off." Loki slowly rose from the sofa, wearing nothing but a pair of black jeans, carrying the small plate of chocolates while prowling towards her.

Her breath hitched but she tried to play it off by snorting. "Since when do you care about not overworking the repairman?"

"Since he complained that I had already paid for his children's college and am now working on his grandchildren's."

Tracy frowned. "Loki, I don't think that was a complaint."

He knew that, but he succeeded in throwing her even more off her stride. "So, how was the movie?"

His Pet rolled her eyes. "I think it was good, but I can't say for sure since there was someone sitting a couple of rows behind us who wouldn't shut up the entire time. They weren't even talking loudly. Having ultra-sensitive hearing really blows. Also, Bucky snores."

Loki had plucked a truffle off the plate but now it was his turn to pause. "I beg your pardon?"

"He fell asleep during the film, and neither Steve nor I had the heart to wake him. He drools too. I had to change shirts after the movie let out. Good thing I always have a spare in my backpack."

Loki chuckled. "It sounds as though you can use a treat." He held the chocolate up between thumb and forefinger. "Open up, my Pet," he purred.

Her breathing was picking up, becoming shallower as her lips parted to accept his offering. He let his fingers linger by her lips as she chewed, their eyes locked on one another's. After she swallowed, she kept her eyes on his as she wrapped her lips around his thumb. Her tongue twirled around the digit and she sucked lightly. She switched and gave his index finger the same treatment.

He stepped out of her reach when her hands moved to touch him. After that performance, if she laid even a finger on him, he was going to lose control and he had plans he wanted to put in motion before taking her tonight. She noticed when he had to reach down to adjust himself. The little mynx.

"You're in a mood tonight," his Pet observed, fluttering her eyelashes.

"I do not need to be in a mood to desire to play with my gorgeous wife." She didn't roll her eyes at his words, but Loki knew she wanted to. Tracy didn't think of herself as beautiful. From her point of view, she was average height, thin, and gawky with freckles and dark mahogany colored hair that had a tendency to fritz a lot. She still had a habit of wearing clothes that were too big, chewed on her nails when she was nervous or stressed, and her healing abilities were the only reason her skin didn't go from cream to cooked lobster within minutes of being in the sun. She saw herself as plain.

Loki vehemently disagreed with her assessment. There wasn't anything plain about her. She was perfect. She was also, he noted when she leaned forward to capture one of his fingers in her mouth again, incorrigible. She hadn't been all that sexually confident before. It seemed his work with her was paying off.

He let her lick and suck on his finger for a few seconds before withdrawing it. "Enough, Pet," he growled. He fisted his hand in her hair and tugged her forward so their foreheads touched, his lips just centimeters away from hers. She shivered as she braced her hands on his cold chest. "I have something in mind for tonight," Loki whispered. He couldn't surprise her with this. That would go bad. Very bad. He needed to warn her ahead of time so she could decide if she wanted to go ahead with what he had in mind, or needed to tell him to drop it. "I feel that you need it."

Her shivering wasn't just because of the aura of cold he was radiating. Her body was pressed against his, making it very clear that she was excited. "W-what is it?"

"It involves impact play."

She blinked.

The two of them had started to experiment a little bit. Loki had spanked her several times and she hadn't had a negative reaction to it. He was careful to use his hands, fur lined paddles, soft velvet floggers, things that would not hurt her as much. He never, ever used impact for punishment, trying to keep it associated with positive things for her. They had worked up to leather floggers and slappers. Loki felt that she was ready for something more, and for the cleanse he wanted her to have she needed something a little more intense.

"Still with me, my love?" Loki asked, pressing his thumb against her lower lip.

"Yes," she whispered immediately, her tongue darting out briefly to lick at his thumb. Yes, there were nerves in her eyes but also intrigue. That was good.

"What I have in mind, is something we have not yet done." He slowly drew away from her and reached into his personal magical cupboard and produced a thick, short, kooboo cane. His Pet inhaled sharply and swallowed hard. "This is the least intense cane I was able to find. I do not intend to give you too many strokes with it, and I also intend on warming you up a great deal before we start. Go ahead, take it."

He handed her the implement and watched her study it, feeling the texture of the rattan, tracing the braided handle, and listening to the whistle in the air it created when she gave it a few test strokes. There were definite nerves now. "Why?" she asked quietly.

"I will explain when I am about to use it...if you consent to me doing so," Loki told her, reaching out a hand to stroke her cheek, his index finger caressing her temple. "This is not a punishment," he reassured her. "You know I would never strike you in anger, nor would I ever do so unless you desire it. I would disembowel myself before I ever hurt you," he finished softly.

She shuddered when his thumb brushed her lips again. Her eyes met his. "I know." She flipped the cane so she could hand it back to him handle first. "And I trust you."

He pulled her forward to kiss the side of her face and whisper in her ear. "This is not a punishment," he reiterated, because it was very important that she know this. "I want you to keep that in mind because, when we start, you are going to be tempted to believe I am angry with you. I am not. I am, however, concerned."

"I-"

"Do not," Loki growled. "Do not tell me you are fine."

She stayed silent. Very wise of her.

Loki wasted no time stripping her of her clothing using his magic, running his chilly hand down her bare back. He reached her ass and gave it a smack to test her. Her responsive moan gave him hope. Perhaps this evening was not doomed to fail. Yes, she had given her consent, but once they got into it, she may quickly change her mind. Loki would monitor her and if he felt that she was in any distress at all, he would stop. The last thing he wanted was for her to fear him. It would destroy him if she ever did. It nearly destroyed him when he was unable to touch her for the first couple of months after meeting her.

He gave in to one need and claimed her mouth, his lips massaging hers while he wrapped his arms around her. Her hands stroked his back and traced the ridges there. She liked doing that, and it drove him crazy. He bit the side of her neck, his hands fondling her, mouth tasting her, nails raking her flesh. Loki was always rougher in his Jotun form but his Pet never complained. It rather inflamed her desire, almost turning her animalistic herself.

That would have to come later. If his calculations were correct, there was something he needed to talk to her about and they would need to make arrangements very soon. Tonight, he needed to keep his wits about him.

He turned her around and bent her over, allowing her to catch herself on the back of the sofa. Then he called in another item.

"L-Loki?"

"Shhh, Pet. I am not going to bind your hands. But I want you wide open." Loki knelt down and snapped one cuff on her ankle, then another. Then he adjusted the spreader bar to widen her stance as far as possible. By not binding her hands, he was giving her a feeling of some control, but she wouldn't be able to close her legs...especially since he used a spell on the bar to reinforce it so it would hold against even her strength. "And you are going to have to hold still for me. You know what will happen if you do not."

Unable to resist, he ran a finger through her slit. She was dripping and hot. He pinched her lower lips between thumb and forefinger, drawing a wanton moan from his Pet. He pulled his hand back and smacked her buttock.

He peppered her back with kisses and murmured "This is the warm up, my Pet. While I am preparing you, I want you to think about this." Loki paused. "I know you have been hurting ever since you went with Strange to help with those trafficking survivors."

He could almost hear her pulse race while her breath caught.

"I am not angry," Loki reassured her, stroking his cold blue hand down her back and then smacking her other buttock. "I am hurt at seeing you in pain. I am hurt that you still feel as if you should hide it from me when you are in pain. This is not a punishment, Pet. This is a purging." He spanked her again, a little harder. "You of all people know better than to keep those sorts of emotions bottled up inside. You know what can occur. You know better."

He spanked her several more times, alternating between her cheeks, turning her ass nice and red. He was warming her up but the cold from his hands also had a numbing effect on her flesh, which meant the caning would not hurt her as much as it normally would. He didn't want her in pain, he wanted her to let go and cleanse.

"You have been holding onto this for too long, my love. It is time to let it go." He took up the cane. "What did I tell you about keeping anything from me?"

In a shaky breath, his Pet spoke: "Don't do it."

Thwap. The cane cut the air as it marked her buttocks briefly. Marks did not stay on her for long. His Pet let out a loud gasp.

"Why did you do it this time? What was it about this time that was different?"

"I don't-"

Thwap.

He heard a loud pop and saw bits of stuffing rising into the air from the seat of the sofa. Tracy had been gripping the cushion so hard that she actually made it burst like an overinflated balloon. He had to admire her restraint.

"I know those survivors got to you, Pet. What was it? Did their situation remind you too much of your own? Did it dredge up memories of when you first arrived, when the Avengers had to take care of you?"

Thwap. She grunted and whined through her clenched jaw.

"I know you hate being helpless and vulnerable. I want you to remember that you are safe to be vulnerable with me. You always will be. If you need to cry, scream, rage, rip our home apart, have me teleport us somewhere where it is safe for you to destroy everything within a fifty-mile radius, we will do that."

Thwap. Now she gulped as if she were having problems breathing and Loki watched as a bruise formed and then faded.

"Let it out, my sweet," Loki ordered her in a soft voice. "Let it all go. It tears me up seeing you so."

Thwap.

Another bruise bloomed, then faded just as fast as it appeared. She burst into tears, which was what he'd been waiting for.

He tossed the cane aside, released the spreader bar with a gesture, and pulled her down to the floor and into his lap. He wrapped his arms around her tightly as she sobbed into his chest.

"That's it, my love. Let it out. Let yourself purge those feelings, those memories." He stroked her hair and just held her. He couldn't tell if it were minutes or hours that went by. He just breathed in her scent and listened as her sobs eventually quieted.

She began seeking another kind of comfort from him, and he gave it to her. He tried to be gentle, but her impatient growls and the bite she gave him on his lip that drew blood told him she didn't want to be treated as fragile. He did his best to fuck her through the floor, biting her hard enough to leave more bruises. Each time he did, she came harder. She was tight and molten around him, even moreso in this form than when they were together in his usual body.

"Thank you," she whispered later, after their second time. They had managed to migrate from the living room to their bedroom. "I needed that."

He kissed the top of her head, feeling proud of this woman who was growing stronger with each passing day.