Sorry if this is sloppy. I should be asleep right now. Your welcome33

Brunnhilde spun around and arced her dagger, deflecting Loki's long knife. Before he could return the blow, she swung it around and knocked Loki's weapon out of his hands. He raised his arms in defeat.

"You won,'' he added with a glint in his eyes, "again.''

"You're letting me win,'' the Valkyrie accused.

Loki mocked innocence. "Me? Never.''

Brunnhilde easily disarmed him again. "Liar.''

"All right, that time I'll admit I let you win. But eighty-percent of the time it's perfecting fair I can assure you.''

"Then why do I keep beating you?'' She asked pausing for a rest.

"Probably because you've stopped drinking; you have practiced more and your senses have sharpened.'' Loki traced his pointer finger along the sharp edge of his knife.

"You think so?'' Brunnhilde fought to keep the excitement out of her voice. It had been a full week since Loki had made her stop drinking. The first couple days were awful. Brunnhilde had felt sluggish and depressed. She had been furious with Loki, but he kept insisting the first effects were only temporary. He was right. Now Brunnhilde had never felt better. Her senses were sharpened. She was alert and aware of her surroundings. Her entire system felt detoxicated. And Brunnhilde felt happy. Actually, genuinely happy. She had Loki to thank.

During the first couple days Loki had kept her busy with training. He seemed to think she would need it. She couldn't imagine what could go wrong now. Ragnarok was past. What else was there to worry about?

"Loki,'' Brunnhilde met his deep green gaze. "What is going to happen?''

The god of mischief's expression betrayed nothing. "What do you mean, Brunnhilde?''

She cocked her head. "You've done something. Don't try to hide it from me.''

"Do you want to know?''

"Yes.'' What is he doing?

Loki narrowed his eyes, tilting his head back. He extended his right arm. A blue mass shimmered above his pale hand. The mass quickly formed into cube. A shiver ran down Brunnhilde's spine. It was the Tesseract. From Odin's treasury on Asgard. It held the Space Stone, one of the six powerful Infinity Stones.

"Why the hell did you take that?'' Brunnhilde breathed.

"I owe it to someone.''

"To whom would you owe an Infinity Stone?''

Loki pursed his lips. "Doesn't matter. I had a deal with someone and I screwed up, thanks to Thor and his Earthly friends.''

"But why does that matter now?''

"Because—,'' Loki's voice dropped. "Because he's looking for me. He knows I have the Stone. I already lost him one. He's coming for me.''

"I don't understand. Loki, you aren't making any sense! If you knew 'he' would know if you got the Space Stone then why did you take it? You could have left it in Asgard. It would have gotten destroyed; problem solved.''

"Because he would know if it was destroyed and he would kill us all!'' Loki's face was suddenly close to her's. His breath was warm on her neck.

Brunnhilde trembled. "And who is this person who has so much power?''

"His name is Thanos.''

Brunnhilde heard the name but it didn't register. Loki was almost touching her now. She had the sudden urge to wrap her arms around his neck. This person—Thanos—if he knew could track Loki. . . if he would kill all of Asgard if Loki hadn't taken the Stone. . . Was it a danger if Loki did have the Soul Stone? Would it still anger Thanos he had lost another earlier? Brunnhilde's mind muddled. She couldn't focus. She felt Loki's fingertips run down her back. Even after knowing him for such a short time she suddenly never wanted to leave his side. Could they have a future? Could the drinking and misery finally be over in her life? She had a chance to be happy. . . would she take it while she still could?

She jerked away from him. She stumbled and almost fell to the ground. Brunnhilde was vaguely aware of Loki asking her if she was alright. `She regained her footing and stood up right into Loki. She grabbed him by the shoulders.

"Are you in danger?'' She fiercely demanded.

For the first time since they met, Loki looked surprised. He didn't even respond immediately. "Why do you care about me all of a sudden?''

Brunnhilde stepped back from him. "Because you're my friend.''

"Didn't you just agree to be friends with me until someone better came along?"

Brunnhilde shifted uncomfortably on her feet. "I did. . . at first. But no one better did come. I—I didn't want them to. I want you to be my friend. I wouldn't want anyone else.'' She swallowed down emotion. She hated the tremor in her voice.

Loki took a step towards her so they were close again. "I wouldn't want anyone else.''

She wished she knew if he was simply repeating her or he meant it. She wanted him to mean it with his whole being.

"I'm waiting for Thor to come in at this moment,'' Loki muttered.

The Valkyrie laughed. She embraced him. He held her tightly. She felt safe. She felt wanted. And something else. A tingle in her chest. Brunnhilde kissed Loki's neck. His skin was cool against her lips, his breath warm on her cheek. Brunnhilde had never kissed a man. The Valkyrie being sworn virgins and they did not look for the opportunity. It wasn't until then she knew how much she had missed out. Never let this moment end, she prayed. But too soon Loki pulled away. He still looked immersed though.

"I must go,'' he told me. Brunnhilde was surprised how much my heart sank. But she nodded. Loki squeezed her hand and fled. Brunnhilde watched him go. Watched the graceful, beautiful god she had just kissed leave the room. For several minutes Brunnhilde was weightless, emotionless, thoughtless. Then she offered a new prayer. Never let me forget that moment.

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