Late for the Love of My Life
It's not that he's afraid of stormy weather, but as stated once before, he is not overly fond of what follows. Which is why he keeps looking to the sky as the thunder booms and lightning cracks. If Thor is on his way, Loki wants to be well prepared.
Sigyn isn't fazed by the intense weather and once inside Roxxcart, doesn't bother wiping the rain from her face or wringing out her drenched hair.
However, Loki twitches with discomfort and uses sorcery to dry himself. With a flick of his wrist, he provides the same service for Sigyn. He shrugs at her raised brow and stuffs his hands in the pockets of his TVA jacket, then follows her to join Mobius and the others.
The group splits into small teams to search for the variant. Regardless of Mobius' instructions or Hunter B-15's threats, Loki and Sigyn head off together.
They're strolling down an aisle of canned foods, none of which look particularly appetizing when Loki starts speaking. "So," He skips a few paces ahead then turns to face her and walks backwards. "I have been thinking."
Sigyn glances at him, keeping her pace.
"The TVA might be able to restore your tongue. I've yet to find the limitations of their power. And once I explain the nature of your own specific magic and its need of incantations, Mobius may be willing to speak on your behalf to Renslayer. She seems to be the leader under the mysterious Time Keepers. And therefore, since you are without your magic - or a weapon - I would appreciate it if you left all the fighting to me."
She frowns.
He goes on, "And I know what you're going to say - if you could say it, that is. You're Asgardian. You've been training and fighting since childhood. You don't actually need a weapon. You may not be Sif, but you're completely capable of taking care of yourself. But the thing is," he stops, causing her to as well. "The thing is that I won't be able to complete this mission if you're in any sort of danger. If we find ourselves up against something serious or you're hurt in any way, I will abandon the objective and come to your defense. And if I betray TVA in favor of you, you will be ripped away from me and thrown back to the moment I came for you."
Oh.
"And so," he crosses his arms in front of his chest and lengthens himself until he is towering over Sigyn's small frame. "I would prefer you to stay out of harm's way."
She has no desire to die, whether back on Moord or next to a row of something called creamed corn. She is not cunning like him, nor is she tricky or terribly clever. She would never betray a loved one for her own gain, and she does not cheat. But she is a survivor. She is a good fighter. Her time in exile has honed her combat instincts. And no matter how much Loki commands, begs, or threatens, she will not sit idly while he fights alone.
With a flicker of a smile, Sigyn side steps around him and continues their search for the variant. Distressed, Loki whirls and grabs her by the wrist, yanking her back around to face him.
"Sigyn, please." He holds her tightly, ignoring her attempt to jerk herself free. He pulls her body flush with his own. He speaks urgently, desperately. "Don't forget that we are hunting a version of me. We've no idea how diabolical this other Loki is and what he's willing to do. We know nothing of the sorcery he may be capable of. I've no desire to have my wife used against me or murdered. If I had my knives, I'd give you one for your own protection. But being as I am unarmed and you cannot utter a word of enchantment, I will have to use my wits and own magic to see us through this all."
His grip on her tightens as he speaks. Again she tries to tug free, but he refuses to let go until she understands the severity of their circumstance. He does not blame her for being spooked by his action, but he will not have any danger come to her. No matter if he bruises her skin now, it's a small price to pay if he can keep her alive once the variant finds them.
He has no doubt this other version of himself will use Sigyn in some way. Whether to command obedience or to show off his lethal brutality, if he is a true Loki he will know of Sigyn and the power she holds over the God of Mischief.
"I cannot lose you." He whispers, swallowing a lump in his throat.
Sigyn slackens at his words, no longer trying to wrench herself free from his grasp. Her doe-like eyes soften and she grants him a nod of agreement.
"How tender."
Hunter B-15 rounds the corner with a smirk on her lips.
Loki steps closer to Sigyn, regarding the other woman with skepticism. "Have you found anything?"
Unlike her usual rigid stomping, B-15's sways her hips down the canned foods aisle. She doesn't answer the question and instead fastens her gaze upon Sigyn. The Asgardian narrows her eyes in suspicion. Loki glares and places himself between the women, effectively making himself into a shield for his wife.
B-15 stops before them and rolls her eyes. "Oh, don't worry. I won't hurt her. She's absolutely delicious."
Loki flexes his hands, itching to use a spell or have his knives at the ready. "I am well aware," he says smugly. "What do you want?"
Hunter B-15 rests her glowing baton on her shoulder casually. "You really have no idea what you're dealing with, do you?"
"I do consider myself deeply observational and have made an assessment of your team that is very accurate." He can feel Sigyn behind him, and knows she wants him to tread lightly.
A flash of green shines from Hunter B-15's eyes before her body suddenly drops to the ground.
Shocked, Loki backs up, forcing Sigyn to bump into the stocked shelf behind them. She tries to step around him, but he raises an arm out to stop her. "Wait." He orders. "Let me." He kneels next to the fallen woman, checking for a pulse on her throat.
"Don't bother," a southern accent chuckles as a man joins them in Aisle 13. He wears a Roxxcart vest and a name tag that says Randy."I haven't killed her." He pins Sigyn with his eyes. "I have other interests and you are making this too easy." He licks his lips and says in a sultry voice "I know who you are."
The God of Mischief rises to his full height, squaring his shoulders and tilting his chin up. He towers over Sigyn and the Roxxcart employee is not much taller than her.
"Have I upset you? Already?"
Loki remains quiet, watching. Sigyn dares not move, for fear of ruining whatever plan of action her husband was thinking up.
Randy rakes his eyes over Loki from top to bottom before smirking. "You're not much, are you?"
The smallest chuckle escapes before a ball of green flame appears in Loki's hands. "If you so much as breathe in her direction, I will make certain you die a slow, agonizing death."
Before Randy can utter a word, his eyes flash and he collapses.
Over the Roxxcart intercom, a woman's voice fills the mostly empty store. "That is interesting."
Without any hesitation, Loki grabs Sigyn's hand. "Come on," he pulls her along with him. His long legs move swiftly as Sigyn nearly trots to keep up.
"Now, now," The voice coos. "If you run, that spoils the game."
"Stay close," Loki commands, his pace quickening.
Sigyn squeezes his hand. He's gotten out of worse scenarios before, he will get them out of this as well.
They wind through aisles and around product displays. Loki cuts them across a clothing department before pushing open a set of swing doors. The back stock rooms are quiet and dark, filled with plastic-wrapped inventory.
"If you make me chase you, you will regret it." Her voice is close, no longer overhead. "I don't particularly like cat-and-mouse games. I've gotten very good at them and find it all so boring now."
Loki whirls around, yanking Sigyn. His green eyes scan fervently for his variant. When she steps out, a hood hiding her face, the silver of a knife gleams from the fluorescent lights.
"Sigyn, get behind me." He speaks calmly, but his wife can see the anger in him. She obeys and slides behind Loki's tall frame. Her fingers flex and bend and she rolls her wrists around, mimicking the dance-like twist her hands perform for her incantations.
Stöðva.
It was foolish to think anything would happen. She needs her voice to create the specific enchantments she mastered under Queen Frigga's guidance. She cannot force this woman to stop. She pushes down the sting of disappointment. She is not useless. She is not a simpering, weak woman. And she will not let her husband fight alone.
Noticing a broom within reach, Sigyn snatches it and snaps the handle over her thigh, creating a pointed end. She holds it up like a sword, poised and steady. It isn't Gram or Laevateinn, but it will serve well enough.
The other woman laughs. "Oh my," she draws back her black hood, revealing chin length blond hair and a broken one-horned headpiece resting across her brow. "You are a treasure."
The tension between the three of them is thick. Loki doesn't let his eyes leave the woman, filing away every move she makes and words she speaks. She has a weakness, somewhere. And he means to find it before she acts upon his own. "Shall I assume you're the variant we've come for?"
She merely smiles and twirls her knife.
"Well you don't seem so dangerous to me," Loki goes on. "Here we've known each other a full ten minutes and you've yet to actually do anything."
A flick of her wrist, and Sigyn's shiv is jerked from her hands and flung across the room. Not a second later, the knife flies through the air towards them. Loki shoves Sigyn aside and snatches the weapon with his bare hand before it can stab his eye. He barely grimaces at the cut to his palm.
He waves the blade back at his variant. "I'll be keeping this."
She scowls.
"You're outmatched here," Loki continues. "Surely you've noticed."
"You like being one of their hounds? Do you even know what they do to people? Innocent people?"
"I'm not particularly interested in their engagements." He matches her steps as she tries to circle around him and Sigyn. His wife is soft footed and alert, waiting for her own chance to pounce.
"And yet you're here. Sent to capture me."
"You could cooperate and come willingly." Loki shrugs.
"Never." She summons a bolt of green energy and hurls it at him. The blast hits Loki square in the chest and sends him flying into a nearby wall, denting the concrete.
Infuriated, Sigyn springs to the other woman, her fist cracking against the variant's cheekbone. She follows the momentum and spins her body, lifting her leg to send a kick to the gut of her opponent.
The other Loki staggers backwards and collides into a pile of brown boxes. With a grumble, she stands. "Shouldn't have touched me, love." She brings a finger to her temple, and winks.
Sigyn's eyes roll back and her knees give out. Her head hits the floor with a loud, sickening smack.
"What've you done?!" Loki rushes to Sigyn's side, but before he can cross the space in time, another energy blast hits him, knocking him back into the wall. He slides to the ground with a groan. The temptation to stay down and rest nearly wins him over. But then that buzzing noise of the Time Doors snaps him back. Coughing, he pulls himself to sitting.
"Sigyn?" His voice is raw and his head is swimming. But there is no mistaking his wife's limp body being dragged through a Time Door. "Sigyn!" He stumbles to standing and tries to run, the door already fading away.
He is a God, yes. He is a trickster and too clever by far. He can be ruthless and cunning and is an incredible sorcerer.
He is also a terrible husband. And too late to save his wife.