A/N: All characters, places, and events you recognize belong to Marvel, Disney, etc. Thanks to the lovely dristi5683 for her good eye.
Day 236
Loki's Chamber
Heart. Skipped a beat. Eye. Twitched.
Three days with no respite.
Jane had left him to his misery.
He had complied with her demands, had ceased probing at this conundrum. Yet she had abandoned him.
Loki cursed and shook his head, contempt overriding despair.
The movement brought immediate punishment. Agony exploded across his face.
Once he could draw a breath again, he flicked a finger, vanishing the fire.
oooOOOooo
Day 238
Loki's Chamber
Dark. No fire. No strength.
Remembered torture: You will show me your true self, Laufeyson.
He had not surrendered to what felt like the final degradation. But it had cost him. The threads of his mind were unraveling dissociating the fibers of his
muscles
dissolving he was a distant memory...
Then.
Sweet cool slipped into his veins calm ease solace
"...Jane?"
"Look, I can't function one more hour without real sleep. I don't have the energy to deal with you tonight. Say nothing or I'm leaving."
She hated him.
Was this poetic justice, perhaps, how soon he became weak without her?
"Loki, this is madness!"
"Is it madness? Is it? Is it? I don't know what happened to you on Earth that turned you so soft. Don't tell me it was that woman. Oh. It was. Well, maybe, when we're finished here, I'll pay her a visit myself."
He hated her.
oooOOOooo
Day 240
Chitauri Space: The Sanctuary
It had been the briefest of reprieves from his torture.
"Show me who you really are, Laufeyson. Show me the Jotun."
"I can't."
"You won't, you mean! I want to see you, you filthy Frost Giant. And I know how to get what I want this time."
oooOOOooo
foul filth degradation
clogs veins
chokes breath
shame
I could not stop it
I have known violation before.
That
pales
in
comparison
to this
horror this mortification
this hated skin
refuge shelter sleep
oooOOOooo
Sarah's place
Patchy moonlight shown through a lacy curtained window. He could see a small round table, two wooden chairs, and an old rug. Loki turned in an unsteady circle. Are these servants' quarters? Was this a forgotten chamber of the palace? No matter. A quiet corner. That's all he needed. Just a safer space for a moment.
He absently scratched a persistent itch, then cursed at the sight of the alien blue claws on his own hand. The Jotun skin had stayed with him, even in his dream. It felt like a winter coat—thick and too warm for indoors. It was rough and wholly unfamiliar, the skin of an ice dragon.
Then: "Who are you?" The shaky whisper screamed in his ear from across the room.
Blood seized in his veins. Jane. No. No.
He truly had been abandoned by anything good and right and holy.
She could not see him in this form—he would not allow that. Loki slid into the shadows, humiliation twisting his stomach. Was he to be allowed not one speck of dignity? Were the Norns set that strongly against him?
Fists clenched, he breathed deeply, trying to keep control. But the bite of the Jotun ridges on his hands broke some dam inside his soul.
A red veil coalesced over his vision; shame condensed into fury. Instead of fighting the Jotun, he should surrender to it. Instead of cowering in the shadows, he would eliminate the threat.
"I have a knife," she said, voice small.
Cold rushed to form a dagger of ice in his left hand. So do I.
"Did Loki send you? To punish me? Like he sent the Destroyer to punish Thor? It won't work," Jane asserted. "I know this is a dream. I can wake up whenever I want to." She edged around the periphery of the room toward him, careful to stay out of the moonlight.
Muscles coiled, like a panther stalking prey, he waited for her to drift within his reach. Just a little closer...he could grab her from behind, run the blade across that pitifully weak neck. One more step...
A wave of relief crashed over him without warning. "Ahh!" Clenched muscles relaxed. He fell heavily against the wall.
"Loki? Is that you? Oh, Loki! What happened to you? You're blue! Do you need help? Why are you blue—oh! You—you really are a Frost Gi—" She bit off the mindless babbling.
"I hate you. I'm going to kill you." Loki snarled through the choking mix of pleasure and agony, tough fingernails scrabbling to hold himself up. If she moves at all...
"What? Loki, it's me, Jane."
"I know who you are, Jane Foster." He slowly pushed himself off the wall, testing the strength of his legs. He held the ice blade at the ready. "It's time to be free of you."
"Don't do this," she said, standing her ground.
Idiotic mortal. Finish her now. A feint to the right; a dodge to the left; a thrust for the kill—
and his legs turned to water
as the drug that was Jane Foster took effect.
What have I done?
Jane spun out of the path of his falling body. The floor slammed into his head, then her boot slammed into his side. Again. And again.
Loki finally stilled her foot with a heavy blue hand. He was at her mercy and he hated her and he hated himself more. "Wake yourself up," he begged. The strength to break the dream failed him. "End. This. Please." His muscles had relaxed, but his brain was crawling with ants.
She stood over him, face obscured by shadows, though the butcher knife she held was plain to see. "No. I don't know what set you off"—low, venomous—"but this will never happen again, do you hear me? Or I will kill you."
"You couldn't possibly—"
"If you threaten me, you threaten my baby. I'll find a way."
She retreated out of his sight. Loki concentrated on pulling air into lungs that felt too small. Gradually his vision cleared and his breathing eased. He pushed himself upright. "Let me go."
Her answer came from the darkness. "I don't think so. I'm desperate for sleep and you need an attitude adjustment."
oooOOOooo
Day 241
Loki's Chamber
She wouldn't come to him. She would never forgive him.
It was better this way. A clear break, if not a clean one.
He'd be rid of the inconvenient mortal. Life was certainly complicated enough without Thor's woman mucking things up. There would be quiet. Emptiness. No break in the loneliness. No respite from the torture. No one.
But...
She never stopped surprising him.
"It's dark in here without the fire."
Would she simply pretend nothing had happened?
"I'm here. The fire isn't what keeps you warm. It's my presence that—"
"I know that. I want to keep an eye on you."
Ah, there it was.
"I won't attack you. And I'm myself once again."
"Both the Asgardian and the Frost Giant are you, Loki."
"We'll agree to disagree. The Asgardian has thus far shown remarkable restraint in his dealings with you."
"We have different definitions of restraint."
"Let's return to ignoring each other."
A few moments of peace, then:
"Are those lines on your face unique to you? Like fingerprints?"
Loki recognized the detached yet focused tone of her voice: this was Dr. Jane Foster, PhD., and he was an alien artifact.
"I saw you form a knife from ice. Can you make any other weapons?"
Silence.
"How does it feel? Are you stronger?"
Silence.
"If you turn Jotun again, can I touch your skin?"
She was merciless.
"I think I hate you," Loki calmly said.
"You mentioned that. The feeling's mutual, by the way."
"Yes, your boot in my ribs communicated that clearly. If we hate each other, then to what do I owe the honor of your incessant blabbering?"
"I'm a scientist. I just saw a Jotun for the first time. I want to know everything about it."
"No."
"You're a prick."
"Agreed. So why do you continue to plague me?"
"What choice do I have?" The defeat in her voice reminded Loki of his own despair. "I've slept very little the past week. My eyes cross and my knees buckle when I walk across a room. I shiver so violently I can barely function. I'm lying to every person I know except for you, but you don't believe me when I tell the truth—ahh!"
"Jane?"
"Just a kick," she panted.
"It would appear the child finds your prattling tiresome as well."
"Oh, Loki, I do so hate you, too," Jane said.
"I know."
Another muffled groan.
"Does that happen often? The kicking?"
"It's been happening more and more."
Loki was not well versed in these matters, but he was aware how a pregnancy normally ended. How would Jane, a small mortal, bear a half-Aesir baby?
"How will you survive?" he asked.
"What?"
Panic colored her voice; he had chosen his wording poorly.
"I mean to ask about giving birth. Who will help you?"
After a moment of quiet, she answered, "I don't expect to survive this."
"We have something in common, then."
oooOOOooo
Day 242
Chitauri Space: The Sanctuary
His life had been reduced to a series of exercises in absurdity. Instead of bringing Midgard under his control, he was mouldering in a Chitauri torture chamber. Rather than exacting tribute from vast hordes of mortals, he was contemplating whether and how to beg forgiveness from one small human woman.
Royal princes of Asgard didn't owe apologies to anyone. But his royal station mattered nothing to Jane Foster.
"She's not worth the trouble," he muttered. "She's a slow-witted, weak, hideous human."
Needles pricked his head with every heartbeat.
A whisper from deep inside: Jane understands the Tesseract better than anyone else, even better than you.
Very well. She wasn't stupid; after all, her intellect was the reason he intended to use her during the next stage of the mission.
She held her own with you quite well.
Why was he entertaining this horrible chastising voice? Yes, all right, there are more pitiful women I could be chained to. Thank you for the little morality lesson.
Hideous is such a strong word.
"Oh, for the love of Odin!" Loki growled aloud. "Fine. I'll stipulate that Jane isn't...altogether...ugly."
Not altogether ugly? Remember those whiskey brown eyes?
"Do you mind?"
And on Gulfjellet, when you pulled her back from the pool, remember how she felt delicate against you, her skin so soft?
"It is entirely pointless to attempt to entice me with Jane Foster. I am immune. And Thor has already laid claim to her. Not that that matters to me."
Remember how the strength flowed back to your bones when you held her?
The curse resounded in the dream chamber.
He truly detested Jane Foster.
oooOOOooo
Day 243
Chitauri Space: The Sanctuary
He needed Jane. Blood dripped from a deep gash on his forehead, the consequence of a "wrong" answer to a question about the Chitauri soldiers.
He needed Jane. He breathed a prayer that he would find her.
oooOOOooo
Sarah's place
He was in the servants' quarters again. Jane wasn't around, so he took a paper napkin from the table and held it to his wound.
"Jane?" he called quietly. He didn't wish to startle her; that wouldn't sweeten her mood.
"In here," she answered, her voice strained.
He followed her voice through a doorway into a sitting room, with a couch and chairs, small tables and a fireplace. A strange woman with close-cropped red hair sat in an overstuffed armchair.
She drew in a sharp breath. "What happened to you?"
Loki frowned and glanced around the room, looking for Jane.
"Don't you recognize me?" the woman asked.
"Jane?" he asked again. "Your hair—you look quite different."
Jane shrugged. "It was time for—mmm!" Her features twisted in pain.
"What is it?" Loki crossed the room to her.
"M'fine." But two sharp gasps came in quick succession, giving the lie to her words. She clutched at her side.
"Are you—is the child—is it time?"
"No. Just a kick," she managed. A tear leaked from her eye. "The child finds my prattling tiresome, remember? I think he's trying to...break my ribs to make...more space."
Loki frowned again. She truly wasn't likely to survive this pregnancy. A flash of frustrated anger: Who will assist me with the Tesseract? How could Thor leave her alone like this? "Let me help."
Jane shook her head. "I thought you couldn't do real magic stuff in dreams."
"Where did you get that idea?"
"From you, at the observatory, with the scratch on my chest—ahhh!" She yelped; another tear streaked down her cheek. "But obviously, if you had healed me for real in the dream, I would have realized you weren't just a figment of my imagination."
Jane wasn't making any sense; the pain must be affecting her reasoning. Loki knelt in front of her chair. "May I?" he asked.
"No. Wait. What are you going to do?"
"I'll put my hands on your abdomen and determine if I can ease your pain."
Jane lifted reddened eyes to his. "Okay. But don't you do anything to my baby."
Loki held her gaze for several seconds, then nodded. He set down the makeshift bandage, stretched his hands wide over her swollen belly, then hesitated. What was the worst that could happen? I could lose my secret weapon. Right. That wouldn't do.
He summoned his scant power, then gingerly touched his fingertips to her abdomen. Nothing happened, so he spread his hands flat over Jane's tunic. There was no response. Withdrawing his hands, he sat back on his haunches.
"What?" Jane asked. "What's wrong?"
He shook his head. "Nothing. I can't feel anything. I think I need direct contact. Skin on skin."
"No. No way."
Loki bristled. "What are you afraid of? That I might ravish you? Don't be daft, Jane."
Jane glared at him. "Just leave it. I'm already feeling better anyway."
He sighed. "It's your choice. If you don't mind, I will stay." She didn't protest, so Loki turned and sat on the floor next to her, resting his head on the arm of her chair.
Oh, how the mighty have been brought low. Loki, prince of Asgard and rightful king of Jotunheim, willingly sitting at the feet of a mortal female. And one who bore the child of his false brother, at that. Blood ran down his temple and dripped onto his shoulder.
"What happened?" Jane asked.
Loki shook his head dismissively. "Just a bit of unpleasantness. With you nearby, it should heal quickly."
Jane cleared her throat. "So...about the other night. When you appeared in Jotun form. Have you experienced that before?"
She was once again a dispassionate scientist. A pulse of shame, of rage, snagged his gut. Loki allowed it to dissipate. Jane was trying to bring sense to a senseless situation, so he simply answered, "Yes. Once."
"Did you choose to transform this time?"
"No."
"Ah." Jane let the admission settle. "Lack of consent aside, how does it feel?"
"Foreign."
"Any new abilities?"
"I feel stronger." He did. It was part of the degradation—to feel that his senses were heightened, to be more powerful, but at the cost of being that abhorred thing.
"Anything else? Jotun is a cold realm, isn't it? How about resistance to cold?"
"I didn't have a chance to test that, though I felt too warm in here."
"Is your skin tougher?"
"I believe that it is. I detest that skin."
"Why?" She chuckled, breaking the 'Dr. Foster' spell. "It's not a bad look for you, you know."
His head whipped around (much too quickly) to gape at her. "I'm a Frost Giant, Jane."
"So? You've already got that brooding bad-boy thing going on that drives girls wild. Now you've added these dangerous-looking ridges and red eyes—"
"I'm the monster parents tell their children about at night!"
Jane hmmm'ed. "Not my parents."
"I'm surprised you're so flippant. That Frost Giant—I—tried to kill you."
"Ah. The elephant in the room. Yeah, I'm still pissed about that."
Quiet.
"For what it's worth, I'm relieved it was a dream. And that I didn't succeed." That approximated an apology, didn't it?
She cleared her throat. "Listen, I know about...about you. Thor told me."
"Of course he did," Loki muttered.
"It sucks. Your father—both of them—are pieces of work. But I won't be collateral damage anymore as you work out your daddy and image issues."
"Thank you for your inspired analysis of my psyche."
"I mean it. Don't take out your frustration on me. This mess isn't my fault."
He held her gaze for a moment, then rested his head again.
"So what happened to you, Jane? Your hair."
"I cut it. And dyed it. And I'm not Jane anymore."
"What a pity. Just as Jane was growing on me. Did you choose to transform?"
"No. And yes."
"Who are you, then? If you aren't Jane?"
"You don't need to know that," she answered without heat.
"Does Thor know?"
"No comment."
He scoffed. "The interrogation doesn't go both ways?
"Nope," she said, "unless you tell me what you want with the Tesseract."
"You don't need to know that," he replied, then closed his eyes and relished the feeling of building strength.
oooOOOooo
Day 244
Sarah's place
Jane rested in the same chair, eyes closed, hands cradling her ever-heavier belly. He limped in and folded himself to the floor at her feet without preamble or permission.
"How do you travel without an Einstein-Rosen bridge?" Quiet; resigned; weighted. "I know you were there when I was working on that project in Puente Antiguo for Erik and SHIELD."
She was bluffing. She had to be.
"What do you want with the Tesseract, Loki? I'm scared of what you're planning to do. What will happen to us, to me and the baby?"
Something twisted inside of him at her melancholy.
"I won't let anything happen to you." As the words left his mouth, he realized he meant them. Jane Foster was his.
Not all of her...
No, not all of her. Her heart and her body had obviously already been given to Thor. But her mind and skills—those were his. No one else was going to get their hands on her.
"You can't promise that," Jane whispered. "So much has already happened. So many endings, so many goodbyes..." Her voice broke.
He understood. What he wouldn't give to sit at his mother's feet once more, to stand proudly in the throne room by his father's side, even to train with Thor. But some ties, once broken, can't be mended.
She cried out. Loki turned to her. "Jane. You must allow me to help." Perhaps he could still make amends with her.
She nodded weakly. Swiftly, he slipped his hands under her blouse and over her bare abdomen. A cacophony of images, sounds, feelings, impressions, even smells, assaulted him. Loki closed his eyes and allowed the energy to come to him, not resisting it. Soft red and black swirled and bloomed on the back of his eyelids. Emotions bubbled up...discomfort, fear, sadness, but also joy and affection. The faint metallic taste of sorcery. And echoes of a voice...Mama...Alie.
Jane moaned. His eyes flew open. "Am I hurting you?"
"No. Feels good. 'S lov'ly." She tried to open her eyes, but gave up and let her head loll to the side. "Don'stop."
Loki was suddenly aware of the intimacy of their positions. He had set to his task with clinical detachment, determined to help himself by helping Jane. But kneeling between her legs, hands splayed over her naked skin, was less the posture of a physician than a lover.
And it did feel lovely. He felt no pain. None. It was too raw, too vulnerable. He almost pulled his hands away, but he didn't want the sweet, strong good to stop. Jane kept her eyes shut, for which he was grateful. What is happening?
Then, a nudge. Movement under his hands, slow, gentle. He carefully, carefully pushed on a bump poking out of Jane's belly. The bump slid across his hand and disappeared.
Hello, little one, he thought, feeling foolish. Can you hear me?
And then a faint impression: Not mama...
No, I'm not your mama. I'm your...friend. You mustn't be so rough on your mother. She's quite fragile.
You're like me...
That was enough. He wasn't prepared for a deep conversation with a fetus. Loki sat back, breaking the connection. He risked a glance at Jane, but she was sound asleep.
oooOOOooo
Day 245
Sarah's place
How quickly they became accustomed to one another. How content he was sitting at Jane's feet. How much he didn't want to dwell on what that might signify.
"Wanna play a game?"
Pulled from his reverie, Loki blinked. "I beg your pardon?"
"Do you want to play a game? I'm bored." Jane sounded like a young girl. He shifted to lean against the couch opposite her chair, stretching his legs out fully and crossing his ankles.
"You seem...enthused."
She pulled a face and drove all ten fingers through her short cinnamon-colored hair. "I don't know what you did last night, but it worked wonders. I didn't feel cold all day long and this kid isn't acting like a wrecking ball. I feel almost normal."
"I'm glad to hear that." The healthier Jane was, the better his chances of getting out of this alive. "I'll play a question game with you. What is this place, Jane?"
Instead of answering, she countered with another question. "What are your plans for the Tesseract, Loki? What are your plans for the planet Earth?"
"Why did you change your appearance? Why is there no evidence of your normal life here? No machines, no stacks of journals, no coffee mugs."
"Where are you really?"
"It's clear you are in hiding. From whom are you hiding?"
"It's obvious you're being tortured. Who is torturing you?"
"Who is Alie?"
"What?" she squeaked, then immediately: "I don't recognize that name."
He rolled his eyes. "I believe I win."
Jane flapped her hand dismissively. "You seem...less dead...than a few days ago."
He snorted. "Thank you for the backhanded compliment. I must say, 'less dead' feels like a demotion. Yesterday you told me I was a bad boy that drives girls wild."
A faint blush crept across Jane's cheeks. Loki laughed and she lowered her eyes. "You were so upset about the Frost Giant thing that I didn't think you heard me."
"I heard you. I don't believe that you're sincere, but I heard you." How odd that he felt free to let his mischievous side show with her.
Her whiskey eyes snapped back to meet his. "Seriously? You're like a million years old, aren't you? And you expect me to believe that you haven't left a trail of broken hearts through the centuries?"
Loki shrugged. "You've met Thor. He's the heartbreaker of the family." He deliberately kept his voice light. "No woman has ever preferred me to him."
"Excuse me? So I'm chopped liver?" Jane blurted.
"What?" Was she delirious? Is that why she seemed happy? "What does that mean?"
"Nothing. Never mind. I don't want to argue with you."
"Argue? About food? We weren't even discussing culinary preferences. I do like liver, by the way. Do you?"
Jane stared at him, then broke into peals of laughter. Loki stared back at her, unsure what had been so funny. Perhaps this was a delayed reaction to the trauma of the other night?
"You like liver," she gasped. "That's awesome," then fell to laughing again. Her face radiated delight; her cheeks were pink and her eyes shone.
"I've never seen you truly laugh before. I like it."
"Well," Jane said, sighing before giggling anew, "I've not had much to laugh about lately. Life's been rough." Her face fell and she looked away.
Loki hated to see her joyful mood dissipate. "I also like kidneys," he said. "What about you?"
Jane summoned a small smile. "Why, Prince Loki, are you trying to cheer me up? Don't you have a reputation to uphold?"
"Rumor has it that I drive girls wild. Evidently I can be charming if I put my mind to it."
"Evidently," she repeated, hands on her round belly.
"Chin up, Jane." He gestured to indicate her unborn child. "Apparently you're somewhat charming yourself."
"Not so much." She drew a shaky breath. "He's forgotten all about me."
You fool. You've made it worse, reminding Jane that Thor has abandoned her. Thor was a fool, too. Jane was brilliant (likely too smart for the God of Thunder), brave, and...not-hideous. There weren't many women, even in Asgard, as remarkable as she. It was a pity that she was a mortal. That child would improve the royal gene pool if Odin would allow it.
"Thor couldn't possibly have forgotten you, Jane. Give him time. He'll come round."
She frowned, face hard. Loki sensed the mood change. "Thor is not the father of this child."
Loki scowled back at her, terribly annoyed that she persisted in lying to him. He'd allowed himself to believe that they had reached a detente of sorts. She had seen him at his worst; he'd spent precious power easing her burden. And yet she still thought he would fall for her clumsy lie.
"Then who is the father, pray tell? He couldn't be of your species. This child has abilities no human has. She spoke with me when I had my hands on you."
"That's impossible!" she fired.
"How did I know the name Alie? That's your pet name for her, isn't it?"
Jane's face blanched. "I...I probably talked in my sleep."
"You know that's not true."
She closed her eyes for a moment and took several deep breaths. When she spoke, her voice was carefully controlled. "Thor and I shared one kiss months ago, right after you tried to murder him. That's the extent of our physical relationship. Unless conception on Asgard occurs by an exchange of saliva, he could not possibly have fathered Alie."
Jane's artificially calm tone had the opposite effect on Loki. "Stop patronizing me! Who else could possibly have sired this child? Tell me that, Jane. Have you had so many lovers?"
"I—you know what? This conversation is over." She lumbered ungracefully out of the armchair and took a few steps toward the door.
"What other non-Midgardians have you met?" goaded Loki. "I doubt even Fandral had enough time in this realm to get under your skirts. Who have you been intimate with lately?"
"You!" she cried. Jane whirled around and planted herself in front of him, hands on her hips. Her newly cropped hair flopped into her eyes. "You are Alie's father!"
He unfurled himself, unwilling to allow her a height advantage. "You are a liar, Jane Foster."
"I bear your rune mark!" She yanked up her sleeve and held out her arm for his inspection. "You did some sort of ritual, then we consummated the bond. In your chambers. Then you disappeared. I don't know why your mark doesn't show up. I don't know why you don't remember." Her shoulders slumped; she dropped her arm. The fight drained from her voice. "How could it have meant so little to you?"
Loki and Jane stared at each other. Tears glittered in her eyes. He forced himself to remain still, afraid of what would happen if he gave rein to the chaotic emotions clogging his insides and coating his throat.
It was clear that an outlandish plan to trap him had been manufactured by parties known and unknown. How absurd, how offensive, to imagine that he could be snared by Jane Foster.
And how angry he was to discover that the plan had nearly succeeded. Because he had been imagining what it would be like if the bond were real. What if Jane genuinely was his: mind, heart, body, and soul? What if Alie were his flesh and blood? But this was fantasy; they belonged to Thor, the golden one. And so Loki wanted Jane to feel the humiliation as well.
He erased all traces of feeling from his voice and expression from his face. "We've had this conversation before, Dr. Foster. I would never debase myself by breeding with a lower species. Particularly with a specimen such as yourself. Your intellect is tolerable but..." He ran his eyes deliberately over her ungainly form. "You leave a lot to be desired, Jane."
Jane flushed and tears spilled down her cheeks. "Get out," she said quietly. Lifting her chin, she repeated, "Get out. Don't come back. This is just a dream. I'll wake up in five, four, three, two, one."
oooOOOooo
Day 252
Sarah's place
Whatever had masked his pain when he laid his hands on Jane, it had ceased being effective. The rebound was hellfire in every cell, melting his bones.
It had been seven days. She was staying away, withholding, punishing. He was no longer amused by her stubbornness, her defiance.
"Jane!" he growled.
The sitting room was dark and empty. These games were tiresome. "Jane!"
A faint noise came from another room. He followed it down a narrow corridor to a small room. One lamp threw a sickly wash of light over an unmade bed. Tangled amongst the bedding was a still, crumpled figure.
"Jane!" His pulse thudded in his head, flashing pain with every beat. Loki rushed to her side in two long-legged strides.
She did not respond.
