Chapter Six:
Sympathy for the Devil or
Could I Possibly be That Desperate for Companionship
With his one word answer Alayna and Loki part ways. Finding her motivation and momentum lost for the night, she returns home to her apartment. It's only saving grace being a small private patio just perfect for her nocturnal comings and goings. Tonight she returns in a state of confusion for once not due to her lab-induced madness. It is not often she goes from wanting to kill someone to actually having a shred of sympathy for them. The cartwheel of emotion is almost too much for her to keep up with. Still, a strange sense of empathy eats away at her initial anger and only serves to rouse her curiosity.
After shucking the guise of Eidelon, Alayna goes to her computer and googles "Loki" only to be met with images of a redheaded god of flame. She tries again, this time googling "Loki, New York". That search brings forth pictures of New York's near destruction at the hands of the Chitauri, Loki's subsequent trial for war crimes and his acquittal. Any information on his background is bare at the most. Nothing useful except for his choice of weapons and a description of his magical abilities, something she could have used before dragging him into that alley.
Until last night her life had been pretty predictable if not boringly routine. Don a mask, go out at night and find some criminal ass to kick. Just another typical and cliche life of a vigilante antihero. It was a means to an end to keep that darkness at bay but now something has changed and it was making her very uncomfortable. Now here she sits in her quiet apartment, haunted by that one word, "hope." Why in the world would a god need hope?
Four days and nights go by without another encounter leaving her with a strange feeling of disappointment. She shrugs it off thinking that life was simply returning back to normal. She finds herself in Central Park looking for trouble but with the new surge of costumed superheroes the criminal element has been becoming scarce. Walking aimless through the jogging trails she hopes to find a wayward mugger to at least keep her entertained instead she finds a familiar figure stilling on one of the park's benches.
Since their meeting on top of the Empire State Building Loki has been having his own existential crisis. His presence on this planet, in this city, has been a form of self imposed exile. A form of self punishment for his past behavior. He has spent his time walking through it's streets not really caring about the looks he has received or the words he has overheard when no one thought he was listening. He has never cared that he didn't belong so why has hope become something important to him? Why now and hope for what? He has been more than content to spend his days doing what he enjoys, studying the vast number of books he brought from Asgard, seeing the occasional film and anything else about this city that might keep him entertained.
Restlessness steals his concentration. Used to be alone with his thoughts he is startled by an unfamiliar sense of loneliness. In frustration he decides to look for the only person he seems to be able to talk to lately. And why is that? He thinks and asks himself aloud, "Could I possibly be that desperate for companionship?" It is a question he doesn't feel comfortable answering. Instead he finds the person he is seeking prowling around Central Park. Not wanting to startle her again, he takes a set on a park bench and waits for her to find him.
Upon seeing him Alayna makes her way to the bench and takes a seat beside him. "Hello Loki. Get tired of the view from up above?" He responds to her greeting. "Hello Eidelon. I find that I like the change in perspective. How goes the criminal hunting?" He deliberately uses the word "criminal" knowing that she thinks of him as one.
Alayna matches his tone and posture pretending that the encounter means nothing to her, instead she lies. "It has been a wonderful night for stopping destruction and mayhem. Are you here to end our stalemate?" Loki laughs lightly at the question and turns his full attention to her. "Anytime you are interested I would be more than happy to continue our melee. Just tell me when and where."
Again she unconsciously matches his tone. "Another time, perhaps. I think I will have mercy on you for awhile." As surreal as this encounter may be she decides to take advantage of the opportunity and ask him a question that has been weighing on her mind. "Back in the alley, when you had your chance, why didn't you kill me?" He looks down at her and smiles. "I could ask the same of you. Maybe I didn't see you as a serious threat. It seems to me that your bark is worse than your bite."
As he expected she rises to the comment, her green eyes flashing in anger. She lowers her voice. "Oh but my bite is very effective." Once the words leave her lips she chides herself. Loki finds her response amusing. "I will have to remember that." He makes sure his words are inflected with a sense of double meaning. For a moment Alayna's stomach flutters and her heart skips a beat. Before she can respond she hears something in her ear piece. Automatically her vestige changes becoming serious. She rises from the bench and apologizes to her companion. "I am sorry Loki but I have to go." Without another word she flies off leaving him to the darkness. Loki watches her departure. For a moment he sits alone trying to understand his renewed feeling of emptiness.