Hey! Short chapter. I'm still struggling with the first person pov, it's the first time I've ever written it. I'd love to hear what you think!

Chapter 2

Fury awaited me when I left Loki's cell that night. He had told the board that I would always be there to guard the Asgardian god but of course, that was impossible. And with my skills improving slowly but steadily (not to brag but I managed to uphold a shield even after leaving the room) I was allowed to sleep in my own room, I was even allowed one free day every month, though I wasn't allowed to leave the building which didn't make it an entirely free day, of course. I worked well only when I was rested and Fury needed me at my best. If he lost Loki, the mass murderer of New York, the axe would swing. It would be his head the world would demand then and the leaders of the world would not protect him.

"You had strict orders not to talk to the prisoner, Miss Dalton. This is not an afternoon at Applebee's, in case you hadn't noticed."

I felt the urge to nod, back down and never talk to Loki again but the accident had changed me, at least a little, for I stood up to Director Fury now, as much as I dared.

"I know, sir. But couldn't it be helpful? If he talks, he might say something useful." If he remained silent, nothing would be gained. I knew Fury saw that as well and he was willing to risk an awful lot for information.

"Or he might corrupt you." He said it as a warning.

"He might," I agreed, red-faced already. "But that's a risk I would take. Loki likes to talk. He will give away something, I have no doubt."

"Oh, well, if you have no doubt about it, Miss Dalton, I'll gladly put my fate, the fate of my organisation and the fate of our world in your inexperienced hands."

Blood rushed in my ears. Oh god, he was right. I was in no position to make such a suggestion. These people had been dealing with heroes and villains for longer than I lived, they knew what to do. I shouldn't have said anything, just done what I was told. What had I been thinking?

"I'm sorry –" I started but Fury interrupted me.

"It might not be an entirely useless idea, Dalton. But you must understand that the consequences of your failure would be catastrophic."

Catastrophic on a scale I couldn't even imagine. World wars. Asgardian enmity. General chaos.

"Yes, sir."

"Good. I'll see you at the briefing." But before he left, I had one last inquiry to make.

"Uh, sir." He looked at me, impatient. "Could I take a chair with me next time?"

He sighed like a short-fused preschool teacher that carried the heavy burden of educating five year olds entirely on his own.

"Don't make yourself too comfortable, Dalton."

And with a swing of his coat, he hurried down the hall, no doubt on his way to an important meeting.

I took that as a yes.

~o~

Loki had been thrilled at their foolish choice of a guard. He had suspected it at first and been proven right by only a few words: She was a lackwit; trusting, soft, weak. The girl's powers might be great enough to detain him for a prolonged period of time but not in their current state. He had felt her uncertainty, her confusion. She didn't know what she was doing or how to do it. Easy prey. It wouldn't take much to win her trust and once he had that, she'd let her guard down. His escape would be effortless and without sacrifice. There would be no blood this time, even if it would take longer, he had vowed. And there was a certain excitement in it, too. Fooling mortals was always mildly amusing. He hadn't played the game in decades, not like this. It would be refreshing. Cassandra Dalton was a gift and he intended to use her.

~o~

It wasn't easy dragging my load through three security doors, down long, narrow hallways striped with lasers but when my comfort was concerned, I could be rather determined.

Loki rose as I entered. My forehead was sweaty and my unruly brown curls had escaped the tight bun I forced them into every morning. There was no helping that now, I knew, but it didn't matter. Loki didn't care how I looked and no one else saw me anyway.

"Making yourself comfortable, Miss Dalton?"

I unfolded the metal chair and sat down, resting my head against the cold concrete wall. I wouldn't call this comfort, really, but it was better than trying to find a new standing position every few hours.

"Rather."

"That is the tragedy of your people. Your foolish desire for comfort at all cost. No one has ever accomplished great things in comfort."

I opened my bag to take out the book I'd packed. "Perhaps," I shrugged, "but at least, being comfortable doesn't get you imprisoned on a faraway planet."

Loki smiled. "No," he agreed pleasantly. But he didn't say more than that.

If I wanted to show Fury that I was up to the task, that I could make a difference, I needed to get more from him than a smile. But how?

He still looked at me with that predator look. I was probably the most interesting thing he saw all day.

I shivered, though not from his gaze. It was cold in here, colder than an autumn day, and I only wore the black office trousers and grey shirt with the S.H.I.E.L.D. acronym stitched across on a breast pocket. It wasn't as spectacular as a catsuit and it was certainly the lamest uniform anyone had ever put together, but it was loose and comfy and that was just what I needed. Tomorrow, I'd put on a sweater, though.

"Tell me something about yourself, Miss Dalton. What crime have you committed to be punished like this? Or are you simply so insignificant they have no better task for you?"

"Yes. I am simply insignificant. I can't say I mind much, it's a lot less stressful than being a proper agent."

That would wound his pride, I thought. He fancied himself so important but I was here, not Fury, not Natasha. Only a lowly employee.

I unwrapped my late morning snack. It had become a habit as of late to take one with me and I didn't see why I should eat any differently here. If anything I needed my snack now more than ever.

"Are you sure you should eat that?" His voice was so venomous that even the best blondie would have been ruined for me. This, however, was a cupcake from the canteen, already stale, the blueish cream had a dry crust and was no doubt full of artificial flavours.

"And why wouldn't I? I am free. I can eat what I choose."

Did he have to eat regularly? I wasn't sure. Probably. He was kind of human, wasn't he?

He gave me a condescending smile. "You are as trapped as I am. All of you, as it is. Your gaoler is only farther away. Insofar, you're lucky. He'd never eat something that abhorrent."

However triumphant he looked now, I felt even better. That was important. I knew at once that he, in his endless arrogance, had said more than he meant to.

My heartbeat accelerated. This could be my chance to prove my value. I only had to remain calm, something I had tried and failed at my entire life. I looked at the cupcake, trying to pretend he'd never said that last part.

"It's not that abhorrent, really. It does have an awful lot of sugar though. But as my planet's end is seemingly imminent, I will eat it nonetheless."

Mockery touched his ego, I'd been in high school long enough to know the type. Mockery would lure more out of him than an interrogation could.

"Is that your final luxury? A slice of cake? How common."

"Final? Last time I checked the sky, I saw no spaceships."

He laughed at that, full of cocksure arrogance.

"You humans never see anything coming."

"But you do, of course, mighty god. Then I must assume you are here out of your own free will. The last days in Hotel Earth." That seemed taunting enough to me then.

"I do not know what a hotel is, Miss Dalton. But you are correct if you assume that I could leave this pitiful cell - and shatter your pitiful barriers, I might add - if I set my mind to it. As it is, however, I'd much prefer a front row seat."

I really hoped that Fury got that all.

"You do have an awful lot of sympathy for the people who once worshipped you as a god."

That seemed to anger him.

"A trickster god. A god of mischief. They made me their enemy. In their eyes, I was always a lesser god than my brother, my father. They will see how wrong they were. How wrong you were."

There was so much fury in his voice, so much indignation, shame, pain. It didn't make mocking him easy.

"I never worshipped you. For centuries, the belief in you and your fellow Asgardians has waned. You had the chance to make a new name for yourself. To carve out a different niche. You didn't."

He didn't deign to answer. Loki, God of Mischief, turned away from me to face the wall, perhaps to create the impression that he didn't care. He failed. I saw the hurt on his face for the briefest of moments and despair so tangible that I felt it in my own heart. I had never considered this: He felt remorse. A cold, hard lump settled in my stomach. Loki was an alien. Up until now, I had thought of him as that. He looked human, perhaps, save for those incredibly green eyes, but he wasn't, not in his soul. It had been conceited and prejudiced. What did I know of his soul? Nothing.

"It's not too late, you know. You can always take the other path. It's not a crossing in the past. You can choose anew every day," I urged him.

A pause followed and I thought my words had reached him but then he turned around again, wearing a cold sneer and I knew his moment of weakness, of truth was over.

"Is that what passes for wisdom among you kind? I chose and I would make the same choice again and again. Only this time, I would best you all and see your cities burned. I showed mercy. I would not make that mistake again."

The pity I had felt lifted like fog. "So, if you were us - if you were Director Fury- you would have yourself killed?"

"If I were you, I would have worshipped the God that descended upon my weak kind to show us the right way. I would have hailed him as my king and I would have lived, unscathed. You presume that I have as little sense as you do."

Big-headed arse.

"I do not. I assume that you have less sense. I assume your judgement is clouded by arrogance and fear and jealousy - otherwise you would not have chosen Midgard for your plans, the very planet your brother guards like the apple of his eye."

That provoked some part of him, I thought, although it was impossible to read him. He might as well have been a statue, though the sculpter had had a sense of humour: Loki's mocking smile was as implacable as a glacier.

"I could have chosen any other planet," he insisted. "But you are so stubborn in your foolishness that I couldn't resist. And of course, my brother featured into my decision."

They had a tumultuous relationship, I had heard. Right now, I wasn't certain his story was something I wanted to hear. The images were still sharp in my mind, dying people, ruined houses, the cries and shouts and sound of crushing stone. I had never seen so much destruction.

"Is that the reason? You have some sort of silly fight with your brother and to spite him you become a murderer? Do you feel like the winner now?"

I stuffed the half eaten cake back into the brown paper bag. There was no way I could eat this anymore.

My words had roused him. Anger was edged into the lines of his face and he seemed to radiate it, too, red hot rage. I had touched a nerve.

"You know nothing about my brother," he spat out. "All you think you know is what you see, empty headed sheep that you are. Do not presume to judge me."

"Then tell me what I miss. I won't judge you." And it was only half a lie. I wouldn't...but the cameras would record it all for others to judge.

"Nothing you could possibly understand. I am of Asgard, a city so grand and golden and imposing, you'd be struck silent simply by looking at it. Your concrete towers are nothing compared to the palace."

I realised he was homesick. He was lonely. Was he speaking true? Was I right to feel a touch of sympathy? Or was he manipulating me?

But he looked so thoroughly angry that I could see no lie in it.

"Why didn't you stay then, if you loved it so much?"

Hurt flickered in his eyes, so unbelievably green, but his mouth twisted into a cruel smile.

"Are you trying to uncover the secret roots of my villainy, Miss Dalton? Yes, you seem soft enough. I put your city to ruin, I killed your people. I am a villain. That is all there is to it."

It wasn't. But Loki, this strange man that wasn't truly a man at all, had buried his pain and there was no use in trying to coax it out of him. Not here, not like this. And wasn't he right? He had killed and he had planned to subdued humankind. Wasn't that all I needed to know?