Eventually, after much prompting from JARVIS, I returned to my assigned room only to curl up on the bed and stare into space. I had no interest in doing anything at all. Time was of no concern to me, but after what seemed like long enough to deem my lack of actions unacceptable, I got up and opened to door to the right. I entered the room, taking the time to carefully close the door behind me.
In front of me was a basin, so I turned on the tap and splashed some water on my face, hoping that the temperature of the water would snap me out of my current state. I had grown tired of the inability to focus. I switched the tap off, and made to leave, but made the mistake of catching sight of my reflection. It wasn't the first time that I had hated what I saw, however I consider it to be one of the few things that changed my perspective on a matter. I turned to face the looking glass, frowning as I did so. There was no rational reason for me to care at all about my appearance, for it was exactly what I would expect to see.
Impulsively, I slammed my fist into its surface. Glass flew everywhere, small, glittery shards falling like a lethal rain. A particularly large shard sliced across the back of my hand, the cut oozing scarlet. I didn't care. Instead of even considering the possible consequences of my actions, I did it again, a spiderweb of cracks spreading across the surface until it was destroyed beyond all measure. "Is everything alright?" JARVIS enquired. I didn't answer. "I am required by Mr Stark to inform him of any misconducts on your part, and it would be of great use to have an explanation."
"I see little use for an explanation," I informed him bluntly. I sat down on the floor, and a moment later, JARVIS spoke again.
"Mr Stark has asked me to inform you of Thor's imminent arrival, and to request that you maintain a level of civility for the duration."
"I will promise nothing," I said. No sooner than the exchange had completed, the door flew open.
"Brother! What has caused you to act this way?" Thor queried, the question echoing loudly around the room. In reality, I had no actual idea, but naturally wanted to leave any other in the dark about the matter.
"It matters not," I replied slightly petulantly.
"Of course, it matters," Thor replied slightly too quickly. "I have grown concerned, for your actions today are out of character…" he began, but I refused to allow this to continue.
"And you think you know me?" I questioned. "After a year? After all that time you thought I was dead? You have no idea about what happened in that year…" I paused. "Now you have the audacity to tell me how I should act and who I should be," I said more quietly, a sinister edge to my voice.
"Loki…" Thor began.
"I have no interest in your words. Now leave." My voice was like ice, and the undercurrent of hostility was apparent. What I didn't realise at the time, was that this was the first time he didn't have to be prompted to not refer to me as his brother.
I stayed there for a while, seated next to the basin, staring at the remains of the looking glass as the pieces caught the light. Knowing that, unless I wanted yet another encounter with the Avengers, I needed to sort out the mess. I open the cupboard in front of me and retrieved from the bottom shelf what I later learned was called a dustpan and brush. Then, I picked up a couple of bandages from the shelf above. After quickly sorting out the cut from earlier, I sorted out the glass on the floor before disposing of it in the bin beneath the basin.
"Mr Stark has asked me to inform you that you should keep your destructive impulses to a minimum for the duration of your stay with the threat of the Hulk should you not comply, despite my assurances that this course of action would not be necessary," JARVIS informed me. I made a mental note to make sure I was never in the same room as Stark and the creature. "On another note," JARVIS continued. "If you need to talk to anyone, you're welcome to talk to me, with a promise that anything you do say will remain confidential unless it should pose a risk to anyone on this planet."
"Thank you for your offer," I replied, knowing that would never take it.
I made my way back into the bedroom and threw myself onto the bed, my gaze once again firmly planted on the ceiling. The door to the bedroom opened quietly, and a short while later closed again. A quick glance in that direction revealed that the visitor had brought in a few books and left them by the door. Who it was and why they did it I will never know. They have my gratitude as those books were my only source of joy over the next few days.
AN: What are your thoughts? What can I improve? Let me know what you think with a review. Constructive criticism is always welcome. :)