Hi there! Here is the eleventh chapter! I truly hope you'll enjoy it :)
Once again, a big thanks to krystal lazuli for beta-reading this chapter!
Welcome to the new followers, adara2006 and MmsMcmillen. I thank you for the chance you are willing to give to my story and I hope this chapter won't disappoint you :)
A big thanks to chivini, Cutie'Sana, gaellefrischknecht, GAwriter, HarumiMisaki,la030902, Lunar Wave, MCU-Lover, Maniiikz, Miko 56, nutsoverteas, Poosa-ard, Siatru, SIMON80420, snakeyeeees, SupergodzillaSailorCosmos, theflowerblooms, for favoriting/following this story! I also wanted to thank the guest Harmony ;)
Please review and tell me what you think about it! Constructive criticism is always welcome, it allows me to take your critics into consideration and helps me better this story and my writing.
Disclaimer: I do not own neither Gakuen Alice, which belongs to Tachibana Higuchi, nor Avengers, which belongs to Marvel and even less Harry Potter, which is the work of the wonderful J.K.R. I wouldn't be writing fanfictions otherwhise! However I do own the plot and my OCs characters of course.
Chapter 11: To Friendship:
"When did Loki start learning magic?"
"He was of a very young age when I began teaching him." Frigga smiled in a composed voice. "Loki is three hundred years Thor's cadet. While my oldest son showed early gifts for the art of war, Loki always favorited wit to direct confrontation. He knew that words could be sharper than weapons and persuasion more fruitful than terror and battles. I knew teaching him Magic would help him develop his talents for it is an art of finding the words that will resonate in synchrony with a person or an object in the purpose of triggering the aimed effect on it. Magic is a game of wits and observation and my son excels at it. In fact, Loki is so talented he developed his own spells, improved our practice of it and learned how to escape Heimdall's all-sight."
Hotaru and Jane silently nodded to Frigga, each one taking careful notice of the Queen Mother's words.
"Doesn't practicing magic leave some kind of personal trace? If Thor was able to perceive Asgardian magic flow in Mikan, would you be able, for instance, to identify it's 'owner'?" Jane asked her, curious, remembering a discussion between Harry, Luna and herself on their Ministry of Magic and the Trace.
Frigga smirked, posing an amused gaze upon the two endearing Midgardian geniuses facing her. "Actually, yes I do. Hotaru, my child, I caught a glimpse of the same magical flow in you and your friend as soon as we met in Heimdall's Observatory. It's Allice's. A powerful Sorcerer who taught me the art of harnessing Magic. It seems he gifted you, Midgardians, of some of his creations. I must say, even though Loki has never met him, that I am certain he perceived it too. This must be the reason why he took an interest in the young Lady he kidnapped." Frigga's brown eyes darkened. "Would you please tell me more about your little friend?"
Hotaru's face paled slightly.
"It has been twelve years since I last saw Mikan. But the girl I knew was kind, brave and extremely generous. Very naïve too. She was drawn to her peers' darkness but she had a particular gift in showing them the way back to the light." Hotaru paused, hating herself for getting emotional at the sweet and sad memories of her childhood she shared with Mikan. "Luna told me that those traits of her didn't change, so I believe Loki has found in Mikan a good ally but not an easy target to his lures. Mikan has a will of iron and would never put others' lives in danger for selfish reasons."
"I see…" Frigga whispered, her heart aching. 'My son is a lost soul, he doesn't know who he is anymore. What an irony! He is the god of Lies and Mischief and yet he lived in a lie for 2400 years! I understand this destroyed him, but… if Jane was able to change Thor for the best, maybe… Maybe, if this little mortal is right, the Midgardian woman might help him find his way back to us again.'
Frigga sighed and quickly recomposed herself, forbidding any tear to be shed. She was surprised by Jane's gentle hand placed on hers. Frigga squeezed it, thankful for her support. This was the moment Thor, Luna, Luca, Sif and the Warrior Three decided to enter the Queen Mother's study.
"Mother, Lady Imai." Thor bowed, closely followed by the company. "Jane." He smiled. "I just finished my report of our situation to the Allfather. I must admit I bring to you good and bad news. The good news is that we defeated and captured Ronan the Accuser and Nebula, daughter of Thanos. However, Loki, Mikan and a Midgardian Sorcerer, Guardian of the Time Stone, managed to retrieve the Orb and escape from us."
Both Hotaru and Frigga went still. Reaching out for his friend, Luca took her hand in his and quietly exited the room with her. He knew Hotaru would prefer them to talk about his encounter with their childhood friend in private. It would give her the comfort of avoiding a public display of her emotions.
After a short uncomfortable silence had settled in the room, Thor cleared his throat.
"Lady Sakura and Loki have managed to escape from us, but their ally returned to Midgard. And, even though Heimdall is unable to locate them, he overheard the Sorcerer's discussion with one of his fellows and he still claims we should not worry about their whereabouts or their possible schemes. Even though they are in the possession of the Orb!"
"I second Heimdall on that." Luna smiled indulgently at the frustrated god of Thunder. "I've literally seen every single memory contained in Mikan's head, I am certain that even if Loki can't be trusted she can."
Obviously, Luna's affirmation wasn't of much help, most of the people in the room having already witnessed or been a victim to Loki's manipulative ways.
"Believe me, my Lady, you don't know the power Loki has to control others' minds." Fandral warned her, catching her hand to place a gentle kiss on it.
Luna threw him a sweet dreamy smile, her wide silvery eyes not shying away from her first beliefs, mildly impressed by his charming ways. Fandral decided to ignore Volstagg and Hogun indiscreetly snickering at him or Sif's blatant roll of the eyes. The latter's nerves were frayed because of her jealousy for the Midgardian Thor was enamored with. As expected, she wore it nobly for her pride would never allow her to let her feelings influence her actions. However, for once, Sif was thankful for Thor's obliviousness on such sensitive matters. The woman warrior only nodded at her Queen's compassionate smile and tried her best to ignore Thor's not so discreet longing stares posed on Jane or the latter's embarrassment at those.
"Thor told us you are working on a way to trace Loki's magic?" Lady Sif asked rhetorically.
"Indeed. We are searching for a scientific approach to create a device able to track back his magical trace." Jane nodded, noticing Hotaru and Luca discreetly stepping back in the room. She kept herself from sighing as she couldn't help but feel sorry for the young duo, especially Hotaru. She had quickly understood why she had earned her Ice Queen nickname. Her implacable and adamant demeanor talked for itself. However, no matter how tall and graceful she stood among them, Jane wasn't oblivious to her paler cheeks and the slight redness in her mesmerizing violet eyes. She knew how heart wrenching it felt like to have a loved one on the other side of the field.
"Well, now if you please, we would like to resume our research." Hotaru firmly requested, in a polite tone.
Thor reached for Jane and took hold of both her hands in his. Leaning in to leave a gentle kiss on her forehead he whispered: "You are the cleverest woman I ever met, dear Jane. I know all you three will find a solution." Nodding to the rest of the group, he made his way out of the room leaving the scientist red from embarrassment trying her best to ignore their friend smirking at them as they followed him outside his mother's study or Fandral's bold whistle. Frigga rolled her eyes at her son's friend foolish behavior, a small smile on her lips.
"Let's get back to work."
In the vast library, only the sound of the smooth gliding of a quill and a pen across the paper could be heard. Loki and Mikan were sitting beside each other in a comfortable silence, the latter oblivious to the Asgardian's close attention posed on her.
Out of the corner of his eyes, Loki could discreetly notice Mikan's long brown hair tied in a bread that reached down below to her waist or the lines of the simple silk dress she had opted for in the tepid warmth of the library. The outfit subtly highlighted the harmonious curves of her body, barely revealing any inch of skin. Loki's gaze lingered on the details of Mikan's face; her hazel eyes were stubbornly staring at the signs covering The History of the Nine Realms' pages, her lips slightly pouting and her eyebrows were joined in a frustrated frown. Somehow, Loki couldn't help but find the image endearing. Unfortunately, Mikan's agreeable traits were giving him a harder time focusing on the textbook than he was supposed to. Fully aware he was heading straight in dangerous territories, Loki resumed his attention to her translations of Flamel's Diary.
One week had already passed since they had started studying Allice's legacy. Every day, they followed the same exact routine, which merely consisted of waking up early in the morning, going to the library and working together until late in the night. Every time, Mikan would find Loki installed before her while he always retired to his chambers after her. "You seem to forget my body doesn't have the same need as your kind's." He had only answered, guessing her question before she had even been given the chance to voice it. One day, the young woman came down with red eyes and a flushed face. It didn't take a genius to realize she had been crying all night. Loki had only raised a questioning yet slightly worried eyebrow, however, Mikan had preferred to shrug the matter off. Had he known better, Loki would have guessed the reason of his Little One's sorrows was her encounter with her childhood friend, Luca.
Thankfully, they hadn't fought once. Though this could be explained by their silent accord on trying to keep their discussions to the fewest words possible. Indeed, even though Mikan had started to feel more at ease in his presence (and, at times, came to even appreciate it), the tensions between them had just started to wear off. She still hadn't forgotten about the Golden Apple Tree incident nor had he fully assimilated her refusal to embrace immortality yet.
Mikan sighed, breaking the peaceful silence of the library. Staring at the page in front of her, her eyes were desperately roving over the incoherent nonsense filling it. Obviously, translating this book was going to be harder than Flamel's diary. It was easily going to take her a while to achieve it, at least a month or two. And, yet, she still hadn't made any important discovery… The book was just filled with rambling nonsense that both Loki and herself already knew.
The young woman sighed again, annoyed. When she started tapping her foot, it finally drew Loki's attention back to her. He noticed she had been focusing on the same page for a whole hour. It was a source of frustration he could easily relate to and he knew better than to let it build up. If these three weeks spent in Mikan's company had taught him anything about her, it was that she had the very bad tendency to act impulsively. Undeniably, Mikan would eventually reach the point of burning the book without giving it any second thought. Deciding it would be wiser to distract her out of her murderous intentions, Loki gently proposed: "What about a walk, Little One?"
His voice brought Mikan back from her thoughts. She quickly considered the proposition 'It ain't a bad idea. After all, I am truly in the need of a break right now...' Her decision made, Mikan closed the book in a sharp movement and stood tall before following Loki's steps outside the library's walls, wondering where they were heading to.
Loki casually climbed the stairs of the three floors mansion, closely followed by Mikan whose curiosity had been tickled. The young woman took the opportunity to throw quick peeks at Loki's back as his noble outfit molded each of his muscles' motions, highlighting his strong features. He wore his black hair back which allowed Mikan to notice it was slightly longer than when she first met him. Little curls had started to appear on it. Mikan bit her lower lip and shook her head, thankful that he wasn't paying much to her, or rather that he pretended not to.
Soon enough, Mikan realized they were heading towards the basement's roof. As Loki pushed the last door separating them from it, Mikan held her breath in awe. A giant glass dome protected the plants covered roof from the planet's hostile environment. The young woman was amazed by the contrast of the lifeless lands surrounding Allice's mansion, drought by the three hot suns beating down on it, and the beautiful, majestic garden on its roof.
"Magnificent." Mikan sighed, a little smile on her face. Loki only nodded to her while taking a seat on one of the terrace's banks. He positioned himself comfortably, placing an ankle on his knee. The young woman observed him for a moment. His aura was inviting. Taking in a deep breath, Mikan smiled at him and sat nonchalantly beside him, wondering how she hadn't found the place sooner.
"Our engagement is going to last for a very certain long time Little One. It'll be more pleasant if we stop ignoring each other and start to get to know one another." Loki affirmed, studying closely Mikan. The latter threw him a skeptical look, but decided to play along.
"Fine." Mikan gave in, crossing her arms on her chest and tilting her head to observe the SilverTongue more attentively. "It seems to me we haven't finished the game you started in your cell, so what about we resume play?"
"Well, then would you do the honors?" Loki smirked.
Mikan nodded, placing her forefinger on her chin, thinking quickly on what she could ask him.
"What was the first lie you ever told?" The young woman smiled as Loki had been obviously taken aback by the banality of her question. Going through thousands of years of memories, he reflected on his answer.
"I am 2400 years old young lady, I cannot give you a precise answer. Though, I remember taking pride in the first time I fooled Frigga and Odin into believing Thor and I weren't the ones who stole food from the kitchen." Loki smirked.
"You were, weren't you?" Mikan chuckled softly, easily picturing younger versions of Thor and Loki sneaking in the royal kitchens, searching for the sweets their mother had hidden out of their reach, the complicit and excited glances they would give each other when they finally uncovered the so desired and somehow deserved pastries.
"However, I must be precise in saying that, even though I am often called the Liesmith or the god of Lies and Mischiefs, I prefer the sobriquet of SilverTongue. I do not craft untruths, Little One: I challenge my listener' assumptions."
A small smile curved Mikan's lips. She leaned back and rested her elbows on the back of the bench. "Clever. I suppose the worst lies are those that are true."
"Indeed. Although I shall say it does help that people are too imperceptive to look at the big picture of what is around them and prefer to dwell in their own preconceptions."
"I see…"
"My turn then." Mikan's smile faded slightly off her face and she looked cautiously at Loki, more curious than apprehensive. "When were you introduced to the Masters of Mystic Arts?"
"Four years ago." Mikan responded, her shoulders a little bit more relaxed. "It was a bit of a coincidence, really." She laughed softly. "I just happened to be looking out for information on Alices in Nepal when I met Master Hamir there. One thing led to another and I suddenly found myself at Kamar-Taj, meeting the Ancient One. She took me as a disciple and allowed me the access to her private library. Mordo was already there, but Stephen only joined us two years afterwards."
Loki had observed Mikan silently while she spoke to him. He had noticed she wasn't a shy type of woman. Instead, she was talkative and too sociable for her to be able to fully ignore him. Her cheerful personality seemed to allow her to befriend others easily. He knew enough about her past to fully assume this quality was what had led her to that particular path of hers, what had opened her so many opportunities. Indeed, Loki still had freshly in mind the first time they met, how insouciant and reckless Mikan had behaved, for the simple reason she wanted to free him from the invisible chains partially binding his soul and mind to Thanos' will. He who she barely knew nothing about, he who she had never had any contact with beforehand, he who, one month prior to their first encounter, had killed thousands of her kind. Yes, Mikan was rather outgoing, highly optimistic and an energetic kind of person. At times very stubborn too and Loki found those qualities of her truly endearing for when they weren't the cause of their arguments.
Mikan's eyes meet Loki's once again and she threw him a gentle smile. At this instant, she was truly willing to forget their differences and just enjoy a decent conversation with him. Whether his intentions to learn to know her better were genuine or not, she couldn't care less for there was a truth behind it. Indeed, if they were to spend all this time together in this basement and if they wanted their teamwork to be truly efficient, they had to work on and try to ease the tension between them.
"I would have asked you what your favorite color is, but it seems obvious that it's green." The young woman chose to ignore Loki's blatant eye roll and pursued: "So, this might seem to you as a petty question but what is your favorite meal?"
"This one is rather easy: anything that has honey in it."
Mikan smirked: "Well, the least I can say is this did come out to me as a surprise!"
Loki arched a curious eyebrow. "And, may I know what makes you think so?"
"Well, I just assumed you to be more of a picky eater." She shrugged.
"If you say so. Then, what is yours?" Loki asked, slightly curious.
"My favorite treat is Howalons, a specialty of the Academy Alice. You should try it. At least once!" Mikan exclaimed excited, her laughing eyes lightening up her beautiful face. "I doubt that you know what a marshmallow looks like but it is similar to one or to a cotton candy. It has this amazing milk flavor and it is as soft as a cloud. Oh, and when you eat it, there's this incredible feeling of happiness that starts running through your veins! I just love it!"
A foreign warmth filled Loki's chest. The truth was that since he had jumped from the Bifrost, no, since all the events that had followed Thor's failed coronation, he hadn't had the opportunity to enjoy even a simple, mundane conversation like this one, nonetheless in such an agreeable company. The word innocent crossed his mind for an instant, nevertheless Loki knew better than to make the mistake of considering Mikan as such. 'She has more than one card under her sleeve.'
Loki didn't feel the need to be embarrassed for enjoying their discussion, neither did he desire to hide it. It would be useless since she could sense his aura and feelings. Furthermore, it could only serve in his favor since it would flatter her. So, Loki only nodded to her enthusiasm and smiled back at her when she smiled at him.
"So, Loki, putting New-York aside, have you ever visited the 'good people of Earth' before?"
"As a matter of fact, I did. A couple times." He confirmed as he rose to his feet and walked towards the glass wall. "How do you suggest Vikings or Midgardians in general would have known about us otherwise?"
"You make a fair point." Mikan admitted, joining him. The landscape to her back, folding her arms across her chest, one foot resting on the wall, she leaned her head on the glass, facing him fully. "I should rephrase my question then: has none of your previous experiences on Earth, New-York put aside, made you reconsider your opinion on us?"
Loki locked his eyes in Mikan's as he tried to decipher what were his Little One's motives behind this question.
"But darling you already wasted your shot on the previous question!" He teased her, leaning nonchalantly on his elbow on the glass wall.
Mikan cocked her head to the side, so she would still be able to face him fully. This movement made her braided hair fell on her shoulder. She was once again struck by the harmony of his traits. With a knowing smirk of his own, he was amused to catch her blatantly staring at him. His eyes teasing, Loki poked her on the nose with the tips of his finger. Mikan kept herself from chuckling and with a little pout on her lips, she pleaded: "Aww. But we both know you won't mind answering it, will you?"
Holding one palm to his heart, Loki raised her hand to his lips. "Since you insist Milady, I will provide an answer to your question. Although I am afraid the truth might upset you." Mikan's eyes flashed with defiance as she tried in vain to fight down the warmth threatening to travel to her cheeks. Loki's lips twisted into a sneer. "Now, firstly, let's correct some assumptions of yours: my position on your Realm is no different to those of the residents of the eight others. And, to be honest, this is not very hard to realize why. Your bodies are so fragile its bones can break effortlessly." To illustrate his statement, Loki squeezed her hand without putting enough pressure to harm her. Loki noticed Mikan's frown but pursued regardless of it. "Your lifespan is so short it's ridiculous: the best you can hope for is to live up to one hundred years. Or, what is a hundred years to us if not a heartbeat? And yet, your people chose to waste the already too short time they are given to live to constantly kill one another over such petty things as some lands or the color of their skins. Except a mere handful of your people, most cannot even picture the reality of what is happening beyond your realm, taking things as far as believing yourself to be the only inhabitants of the Universe and its center. Tell me Little One, isn't it ironic that Midgardians are so self-conscious of their weakness, their insignificance, they are naturally inclined to idolize us, crosses and whatsoever? To the point they are even ready to bow in front of a cow in the hopes to understand the reasons of their existence!"
"Even though I have to admit you are right on our ridiculous need to fight one another, I also do believe some of your ideas are misplaced. I am more than certain racism, big egos and the hunger for power are vices present in all the residents of the Nine Realms." Mikan retorqued. "Actually, for a reminder, you incorporate all of those faults at the same time."
"Ouch, touché! I'll give you this one, sweetheart. However, I must insist that I, just as well as all Asgardians, know better than to let these flaws stifle our kingdom. We have experienced rivalry amongst our ranks, duels and at times treasons, yet these are still nothing in comparison to what your kind is capable of for Asgard has never been the scene of any civil war. Each one of us knows from the very beginning which purposes he is assigned to serve in our Realm."
"I see." Mikan whispered as she tried to process Loki's explanations from an objective and impartial point of view. Though, she was tempted for a moment to play the Ragnarok prophecy card. "I suppose that as long as you all take your problems out on others' Realms instead of yours, you are OK with it."
Loki made a show of rolling his eyes. "You know I didn't mean that."
"Enlighten me then." Mikan replied sarcastically.
"My pleasure. With a lifespan as long as ours and the capacities we possess, the challenges we aim for are meant to be higher than yours. We need to find an objective to pursue and this quest makes us somehow little similar to your kind. I, for example, crave for knowledge and perfecting my mastery of Magic. Odin and his father, Bor, before him assured Asgard's domination over the Nine Realms and Thor, the Warriors Three, and Sif are passionate warmongers. Although, even if Thor's passion seemed to have changed, he still craves for battles. He's just become more reasonable after falling for this mortal."
"This mortal has a name and it's Jane."
Loki shrugged it off. "Yes, whatever."
"You don't seem to appreciate her."
"Well, if not for the good influence she had on Thor, I would have still been on the throne of Asgard." Loki sneered, annoyed by Mikan's blatant incredulous look.
Mikan smirked at Loki's annoyance. Somehow, she found it endearing on him which might even encourage her to tease him further. She opened her mouth but closed it as Loki's choice of words finally sank in. The fact that he considered Jane's influence on his brother positive only spoke for itself. 'You do still care for him, don't you?'
"You don't look too upset." Loki remarqued. His voice brought Mikan back from her thoughts.
"Why would I be Loki? I was already aware of how little you think of us." Mikan pointed out. 'After all, New York leaves little to the imagination.'
"Like the comparison or not, Little One, but you cannot grow an overwhelming affection for the ants in your garden overnight. You may realize they might be stronger or more resistant than what first met the eye but that's it. However, if this is what you wanted to hear, darling, I am aware that some Midgardians are actually worth the attention." Loke paused, and for an instant seemed to hesitate before adding. "You included."
"Oh, I am sure your experience with the Avengers has a little something to do with it." The young woman teased him gently with a smug smile on her face, undecided on how she should feel about Loki's sincere admission.
"Maybe." Loki winced slightly, paling at the reminder of his beating by the Hulk. "In fact, I was rather referring to my encounter with Merlin."
Mikan's jaw went slack. He couldn't be talking about THE Merlin, right?
"What was he like?" She whispered in a breath.
"Worth all the tales that lived on to this day. I am honored to have been his student. He taught me his knowledge on Magic in exchange of Arthur's protection during my stay in Camelot."
'I wonder how incredible a man can be to earn such respect and admiration from Loki…'
Mikan opened her mouth, ready to ask him more about his adventures with Merlin and Arthur but Loki beat her into it: "I believe you already wasted your five questions for this day, sweetheart. My turn."
"Fine." Mikan huffed.
"Aw, there's no need to look so disappointed, sweetheart. It will be a tale for another day." Loki cheered her up, a cheeky smile on his face. "Now, I have to say that I am more than curious to know how you managed to convince Gamora to trust you when even I didn't."
"Well, you can't blame her for that!" Mikan snorted. "Furthermore, she would never have told me all this information hadn't I used one of my Pheromones Alice on her."
"So, you are capable of mind-reading, perceiving peoples' auras and emotions, influencing one's hormones to render him or her more inclined to follow your orders unquestioningly and I bet this is only a slight glimpse of your talents! So, tell me darling, what is it that you do with all this power?" Loki asked, even though he had already a strong guess what her answer would be.
"It's rather simple, I don't use it. Well most of the time." Mikan admitted. "I just… it's… it just feels wrong. I feel dirty doing it."
"This has something to do with you being the captive of this organization."
Mikan's hazel eyes darkened as Loki proved once again how perceptive he was. "When Kuonji finally realized violence wouldn't convince me to do his dirty work, he changed tactics. At first, he started by using it on others to bribe me. 'Do what I say and they'll be safe.' Over time, he gradually developed and perfected a way to neutralize my Nullification." Mikan closed her eyes and clenched her fists, desperately willing herself not to cry. "He would place this horrendous amount of Corrosion Alice Stones in me and, while my body was fighting off their effects, Luna Koizumi would take over my will with her Soul-Sucking Alice. They made me do terrible things, the shame and the horror of my actions still haunt me to this day. And he enjoyed it. This sick psycho loved to inflict torture on me. He took pleasure in watching me be in excruciating pain, he only lived to see the horror on my face when his control would finally wear off." Mikan took a deep breath and unlocked her eyes from Loki's gaze to look away, focusing on the details of the landscape. "I know what it feels like to have my mind violated, to lose all hell of control over my body, Loki. How could I use such powers and still be able to look at my own reflection on the mirror?"
For the first time, the gravity of what happened to Mikan started to truly sink in in Loki's mind. From what he had comprehended, she had freed herself eight years ago. Even though this amount of time was insignificant to him, it meant a third of Mikan's life. Yet, the weight of it was so heavy on her frail shoulders she was still unable to speak about it without barely breaking down.
Her face was leaning on the cool glass, making it possible for him to observe its reflection on it, to reach out for her eyes which were filled by the ghosts of her past.
"How did you escape from their control?"
"In the four years I was held captive, I've only been conscious in two of them as I was put under a long-induced coma the two others. What they did to me in these two, I don't know and probably never will. I doubt that I even want to. I am only certain of this: they experimented on me; changed some of my physical abilities, made me stronger and yet weaker as they kept pushing my body to its limits. They kept inserting Alices Stones in it, so much the energy in me kept growing until my body couldn't bear it anymore. There was an explosion. They all died in it and I survived. The two years after it were a complete blur. I remember barely what I did or what happened to me. Because of Kuonji I lost nearly six years of my life."
"You blame him for stealing these years from you and yet you refused the opportunity I gave you to live longer, to make up for way more than the time you've lost. I still do not understand why." Loki admitted, confused by Mikan's reasoning.
Mikan finally met his eyes again. "I've already lived too much."
There it was, she had said it, the words had finally escaped her mouth and she despised herself for it.
Despite her being only twenty-four years old, Mikan's confession didn't feel absurd to Loki. The mismatch between her eyes and the youth her body exhibited had practically been the first thing he had noticed in Mikan. 'I've already lived too much.' He lowered his gaze to her hands. Grabbing hold of them in a strong but careful grasp, Loki rolled up her sleeves to uncover her wrists. Holding his breath at the sight, Loki caressed gently her wounded skin, retracing the marks of Mikan's self-induced pain with his thumbs.
"You did not strike me as the suicidal type," he whispered.
"That's because I've changed Loki. I've tried several times when I was Kuonji's prisoner and once after the explosion that killed him. The last attempt dates from eight or seven years ago; as I said, those two years were a complete blur, I remember them barely. Mostly because I was in too much pain to be able to." Mikan's responded in a murmur. "I hate those marks but I keep them as the reminder of how egoistic I used to be."
"Why would you say that?"
"Because of everyone's sacrifices to save me. My mom's, Rei's and Natsume's deaths."
Loki contemplated over her response, lost in the memories of his own failed attempts to end it all. Mikan placed a comforting hand on Loki's upper arm and squeezed the one she just realized he was still holding. She could feel his pain too.
"It seems that you and I have more in common than we both could have thought at first guess. We've both attempted to kill ourselves, been under the influence of a delusional psychopath and are mildly interested in Allice's work. What does it make us then?" Loki smiled faintly.
"What about we try friends?" Mikan proposed with a bright, hopeful smile.
"Friends? Oh, I ain't good with those." Loki pretended to shake his head at the idea which earned him an amused chuckle.
"My bad then, I had even my friendship offering ready for you to open!" Mikan sighed exaggeratedly.
A petite white box tied with a green ribbon appeared in her hands. She waved it in front of him, a small smirk on her face. On its side was a small note with his name written on it. The idea she had prepared it for him, even though she was still supposedly mad at him for trying to convince her to eat a Golden Apple, made Loki's heart clench. In a good way. Thankful and yet speechless, Loki leaned closer to caress delicately Mikan's cheek with the tips of his fingers, a cocky smile on his face. He couldn't help but be amazed by how soft her skin felt under his. Mikan didn't shy away from his touch. A soft smile even appeared on her face, almost inviting.
"Howalons, I made them myself!"
"Are you truly intending to bribe me into becoming your friend, Little One?" Loki quirked a brow, his eyes glimmered with amusement.
"You might be gifted in the mastery of words, SilverTongue, but I excel at pastries. I don't mean to brag but I trust my cooking skills to rival Asgard's best chef!"
"This is a bold bet you made here, sweetheart! You shouldn't be so confident."
"Then, why don't you just try one and tell me?" Mikan offered, handing the box out to him. Taking the bait, Loki's fingers brushed over her skin, lingering slightly longer than they should have.
Loki carefully untied the green ribbon, a somehow childish excitation overwhelming him. Opening up the small box, he uncovered sweets that indeed looked like cotton candies. Picking one delicately, he brought it up to his mouth. Slowly, the dulcet taste of the confection continued to an overwhelming feeling of sweet delight. The bliss infused every cell of his body, brightened his features.
Loki had forgotten what happiness felt like, how light his chest used to feel before all this pain invaded it. His eyes grew wet. Turning away to escape from Mikan's perceptive gaze, he focused on every small details of the landscape, forbidding any tear to fall.
In the course of this meticulous action, Loki lost all track of time. So, Mikan chose to retire, conscious he needed some privacy to recollect himself.
When Loki finally left the roof of the mansion, the night blanket had covered up the day and Mikan had already regained her chambers. Sensing he needed some rest too, Loki walked toward his owns, where he traded his clothing for a shirt and a comfortable pair of trousers.
Loki sighed as he sat on the edge of his bed, contemplating the little white box on his lap. Caressing the soft material of the evergreen ribbon that was the exact same color of his eyes, Loki picked the little note which was marked by one single word. His name. He started to study Mikan's careful, elegant and yet somehow childish handwriting while wondering on how long it must have taken her to prepare this, amazed by how she could have been willing to put so much heart in a present for him, all while being supposedly mad at him. It only made him realize once more how forgiving Mikan was. 'That's just who she is.' He thought, touched by Mikan's gentle attention.
Loki placed carefully the box on his nightstand, a small smile playing on his lips. He could only admit defeat on this one.
"Alright. You won, Mikan. Friends will it be then."
Hotaru and Jane appeared on the Helicarrier's deck, holding on tight to Thor to maintain their balance.
To their surprise, the whole team was already there to greet them. Even Hermione, Darcy and Selvig were present.
"I didn't know you would miss us so bad." Hotaru said sarcastically.
"Oh, just cut through the bullshit, Imai!" Clint smirked. "Did you make it or not?"
"We did, Barton. Who do you think we are?"
Luca smirked at his friend's arrogance and rolled his eyes when Tony shamelessly winked flirtatiously at her.
"Well, that's good news." Hermione nodded. "It took us some time but, thanks to Harry's Tracking Spell, we were also able to retrace the galaxy Mikan and Loki are hiding in. I am looking forward to pursue this discussion with you two later, ladies, but let's focus on the source of our current priority. Why did you want us to meet here, Fury?"
"Believe me, I've been asking myself this question all morning." Tony sighed, pinching his nose as he wished for his migraine to go away. God, he hated morning hangovers!
All heads turned towards Fury, the one who had asked for this meeting in the first place.
"Loki's scepter has gone missing."
And all of a sudden, Tony felt completely sobered.
Thanos' grip on the arm of his throne tightened. He could hear the crackling sound of the handle shattering between his fingers. Rising to his full height, the Mad Titan headed towards his personal vault, ignoring the Black Order flinching away from him.
The Other was dead, Nebula and Ronan were out of the game. So was Loki. Gamora had betrayed his trust. 'Such a shame!' The Little One had always been his favorite, by far the smartest of his Children.
'Was it really too much to ask for? Is it impossible to rely on anyone?'
Moving his impressive mass throughout his basement Thanos opened the casket, revealing the Infinity Gauntlet. With a satisfied smirk, he plunged his arm in it. It was a perfect fit.
"Fine. I'll do it myself."
Rolling his petite fragment of the Soul Stone between his fingers, the only Gem left in his possession, Thanos caressed the golden metal of the fake Gauntlet.
'I underestimated you, Allice. I will give you that, tiny Asgardian. But don't expect me to fall for the same trick twice.' Thanos thought, reflecting on his next move.
"Ebony, prepare Sanctuary II. We are going to pay a visit to the Dwarves."
Thanos clenched his fist, refusing to acknowledge failure. The move he was about to do was bold; almost a desperate one. But he wouldn't resort himself to ask for his Lady's help before trying everything in his power to avoid this situation.
With Nebula in his captivity, Thanos knew he wouldn't have to fear a confrontation with the old man. Odin wouldn't try to challenge him more, he was too cautious for that. Even if this meant the whole extinction of another Realm.
When she woke up the next morning, a lush flower accompanied by a small scrap of paper were waiting Mikan on her doorstep. The young woman bent down to gather them, amazed by the beauty of the flower's petals, whose color fell somewhere between orange and gold. Raising it to her nose to smell its delicate fragrance, a small smile took form on her beautiful face.
Stepping back in her room, Mikan made a vase appear that emphasized the flower's grace. Carefully, she placed Loki's gift in it and put the vase on her nightstand. Only then she unfolded the note. Her heart skipped a beat and, slowly, her already bright smile widened. It read:
To friendship, Loki.
AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA AGA
A.N:
I really hope that you have enjoyed this chapter!
Please review and tell me what you think of this new chapter ! ^^