Author's note: Mabel is not Sylvie. I TOTALLY get what they're trying to do on the show between the two of them, the metaphor, the symbolism... I just... it weirds me out. So this has none of that! Chapter takes place between the first and second episode.
Mabel watched the new Variant from across the room. He was extremely tall and probably what some being's would call handsome. Which confused her. They weren't created to have attraction. Which was why her interest in this one was particularly alarming. Attraction was the only word for it. Still, this might have been the one to help her. Help her understand her assignment better.
But most likely he was going to be reset. Anytime a reset happened, it broke her heart.
"What are you doing?" asked Scarlet. Scarlet's long flowing red hair contrasted with Mabel's platinum-blonde shoulder length bob. They'd come up together as Minutemen to lesser managers.
"Observing the new Variant."
"Ah. L1130?"
Mabel sighed. So many Loki Variants had come through here, but she'd never been around to observe. It was strange, especially since Mobius was the one who always hunted them.
"We still on for lunch?" asked Scarlet.
Mabel smiled despite the rock in her stomach. "Of course."
"I'll see you then." Scarlet ran off back to her desk.
Mabel looked back at L1130 and cocked her head to the side. A shame. She believed in the mission: Order, rightness, protecting the sacred timeline. When they were done and the Timekeepers had completed their task, it would all make sense. They would all meet together at the end of time. But she was one of the only agents who actually hated disintegrating Variants.
The Loki Variant looked up and met her gaze. Some new pulse flew down her body. New, and yet in the back of her mind, anciently familiar.
His eyes looked confused, defiant, but behind the bravado, she detected fear. This is what she hated about her job. He finally looked away, and Mabel's hand rose over her heart. She didn't feel like going to the courtroom for sentencing. She couldn't bear it. This wasn't her case.
She headed out of processing, up the elevator to her desk. She sat down and cracked her knuckles over the keys. Her stack of paper work was laying on her huge desk calendar and she flipped through the papers.
More sex time crimes. There weren't many of them, but they were all unsavory. She was told she was assigned to them to get her feet wet once she'd moved up from minuteman. A young managers type of assignment. Though this seemed backward to her. Shouldn't a young agent not be seeing these things? Not that she was naïve. But most species tried to shield the younger members of their societies from this information until they were older. But really, what was older in the TVA?
Perusing the papers, she bit her lip. They all involved one party catching the other party in a relationship cheating. And sometimes, murder. Murdering the partner, murdering the lover, sometimes both. But always some decision by the Variant to come home early. The reasons could vary. Just someone stepping away from their intended path.
If there was a murder, it was always nice to know that time would be reset before that. Although, some murders still happened, they were just supposed to happen on the sacred timeline, and not early regarding the Variant's strange choice changes. But her job wasn't to question. Just reset.
The only thing was, this assignment was killing her. The anger and rage were horrible to witness, but watching partners cheat on each other, cut her to the quick. Faithfulness and Fidelity didn't exist in her particular job, and it was painful to think about.
Mabel headed down to the break room and sat at the edge next to the window and pulled out her lunch. Tuna, mayo and dill relish on multigrain bread. It was the simple things.
She started to take a bite when Scarlet plonked down in the chair opposite her. "You'll never guess," she said, taking out her soup canister.
"What?" asked Mabel, leaning forward.
"Tuna again?"
"Scarlet, tell me." Mabel put her sandwich down.
"I mean seriously, that's the fourth time this week…"
"Scarlet! Focus please. What is it?"
"See how it feels?" asked Scarlet, seizing the sandwich from Mabel's hands and taking a bite.
Mabel sighed. She tended to go back and forth between her thoughts. It was a habit that seemed to vex the other agents.
"The Variant you were observing earlier while he was getting processed?" said Scarlet through a full mouth.
"L1130?"
"Yup. He was sentenced to be reset but Mobius pulled him out, and now he's working for him!"
For some reason, Mabel's heart jumped a little. She'd never felt anything like it before. Excitement over a Variant? "Why?" she asked.
"You know that Variant that's been killing our people?"
"Yeah…"
"It's him. A multiverse version of him. I can't believe Mobius didn't tell you himself."
Mabel bit her lip. If that was true then L1130 was more dangerous than she had previously realized. She couldn't ask him for help now. Although, now that he was here, he couldn't use magic, and he would be prevented from doing anything truly crazy. But the thought of them working together with what she had in mind was feeling a little… not right. But then again… Her thoughts bounced back and forth so much she was dizzy before Scarlet was even through telling her what happened.
"Anyway," said Scarlet, "I thought that was so crazy I had to come and find you. What's wrong? Your big innocent doe eyes look like they've seen a ghost."
"What? Oh. I'm just thinking…Thanks Scar. You want the rest of my tuna?"
"Sure!"
Mabel scraped her chair and darted through all the other agents filing in for their breaks. She had to think this through.
…
She opened her apartment door and dropped her small purse on the ground. It felt so good to be home. She heard the scramble of feline claws on the wood floor from the other room and got on her knees to greet her cat. Her Sabre Tooth Tiger Zabu, came careening down the hallway and pounced on her, paws on her shoulders. He gave her cheek a long lick with his rough tongue.
"Hey boy! Miss me?" she asked, scratching his huge neck with both her hands. He mewled and lay with his full weight on her. "Hungry? I'm sorry I'm late."
She lucked out with Zabu. In some timelines, he was an Avenger, in some, just a primordial beast. But when animals were involved in a Nexus event, they were rarely disintegrated, since Managers had such a soft spot for them. There were a few Zabu's around the TVA, but Mabel's was definitely the best.
She pushed him off, and went to the refrigerator, and took out a huge steak. "Here you are my love." She dropped it in his bowl, and Zabu tore into it with wild fervor. She patted his head and grabbed her watering can from under the sink. Filling it, she moved around her apartment watering her many plants covering the living room.
"Hello my lovelies, you must be thirsty." Once her green babies were satisfied, she sat down heavily on the couch. Zabu climbed up next to her and rested his gigantic head on her lap and started to purr.
She scratched him and leaned on her other hand.
So. The new Variant was going to be sticking around, which meant she could still ask him for help. He would probably be reset after Mobius was done using him, which meant he wouldn't be around to remember her request. It was unsavory, but still, this was for the good of the timeline and the TVA overall.
Decision made.
...
She stood in front of the Variant's apartment door. She didn't get nervous very often, but she felt a small pang of it down her spine. What would he say? She knew what a human would probably say, but Asgardians were completely new to her.
Well, there was no time like the present. She chuckled to herself at her joke.
She knocked on the door and held her breath. Swift clomping strides echoed toward her from inside. She sucked in a little more air. The door flew open, and there he was.
Loki, Variant L1130, standing over her in a gray dress shirt and tie, administered by the agency. He must have been trying it on. The tie was a little off kilter as if he'd struggled to pull it loose.
"What is it now?" he said crossly, then looked down at Mabel, confusion knit into his eyebrows. "Oh, hello…?"
"Mr. Laufeyson?"
"Yes…?" He looked as though his patience was very nearly gone, but she still detected curiosity behind his eyes.
"My name is Mabel, I work in the Time Variant Sex Crimes division."
Loki raised his eyebrows at this. She could tell he was definitely curious now.
"I'm sorry for the intrusion, you must be extremely tired after your ordeal this morning…"
"I know you," he said suddenly. He put his index finger to his lips in concentration. "You were staring at me when I was being processed."
"Yes sir, that was me."
"Sir?" he said, a wide grin splitting his face. She couldn't tell if it was attractive or terrifying. "I like that. Well Mabel, what can I do for you?"
"It's really a simple thing. I'd just like to understand my job and the Variant's I work with better. I wondered if you wouldn't mind having sex with me.
