Chapter Twenty-Seven: More Than That

Before Dinner

Sam was in the library. Not reading, not even looking for something to read, just sitting on the floor in an alcove and thinking. He was actively trying not to be disturbed, he had too much in his brain to sift through. He curled his hands into frustrated fists as he heard the sound of footsteps, no doubt they were heavy black boots.

"Why don't you have your earpiece in?" Fury barked before he was in sight.

Sam felt his communicator sitting in his ear and moved his hand to feel it and make sure. "I do have it in," he responded, abandoning the annoyed way he felt for a more confused tone.

"I've been calling you, I don't like to have to go hunting for my agents."

"Well, you found me," the annoyance crept back in.

"Come join me in my office," Fury commanded, but Sam did not move.

"Is it important?"

"Excuse me?" Fury's eyes grew wide.

Sam sighed. "I'm sorry, sir. It's been a very confusing day. A confusing week. You know this situation is personal for me."

"That's actually what I want to talk to you about," Fury stepped away to grab a comfortable chair from the next compartment and dragged it over to him. He sat and leaned back. "How is she doing?"

"I haven't spoken to her much. I heard noises coming from her room and checked up on her, told her I was assigned to look after her and that was all."

"Noises?"

"Sounded like she was in pain, turned out to be a leg cramp."

"Did you check with Agent Stevens? He's monitoring her cameras."

"I did," Sam nodded along with these words, "and he said she was asleep."

"Was he hearing the same noises you were?"

"No, he wasn't. I thought maybe they weren't being picked up by the-"

"Ha!" Fury erupted sarcastically. "We can hear her breathing, there's no reason he wouldn't have been able to hear it. Unless-"

"You don't think…"

"He had no problem stopping in to drop off supplies for that animal! We already know he can get in and out of the building undetected. What we need to do is draw him here," Fury made a face as though thinking, but he'd already formed a plan before coming to the library and Sam knew that.

"How do you think we should go about that?"

"I need you to be open minded about this. Okay?" Sam nodded solemnly, feeling anxious. "I really think that Loki might care about Eve. Not in the conventional way that us mortals care about each other. But he might view her as some sort of property, a prize he's won. And I think he would respond if we tried to take her away from him."

"We already have taken her away," Sam noted.

"Physically, yes. But he's in her head and he's aware of that. I was thinking that if he could see her drifting away now that he's not always there to control her…"

"Please, just tell me what you're thinking," Sam had an idea about where it was all going, and his heartbeat quickened at the thought.

"You need to make her feel welcome and safe. She is very uncertain of her future right now, but she trusts you. I think that if you can ease her worries and show her some genuine companionship, she may react warmly to any advances you make," Fury studied the agent's expression, looking for hints that he was on the right track.

"I've made advances before, sir," he replied, thinking on the uncomfortable night when he'd kissed her not too long ago. "She isn't interested in me that way."

"She doesn't necessarily need to be, and she doesn't necessarily need to be receptive. I think as long as you kiss her, whether she really wants it or not, he will come. And all I want you to say into the earpiece is 'You were right.' Just find a way to sneak it into the conversation. He will be upset, so you will need to-"

"Hold on," Sam put one hand out to stop the director in his tracks. "I'm fairly sure I'm not okay with this. First of all, I'd be making an idiot of myself. Second of all, if this is drawing Loki out by upsetting him...who's to say he won't just kill me? While not one hundred percent guaranteed, as this entire plan is unpredictable, you have to admit it is a factor. A big one. Not to mention the further damage it would do to my relationship with-"

Fury rolled his eyes and interrupted him. "Let me give you some good old fashioned tough love. That girl does not now and will not ever care about you in the same way you care about her."

Sam adopted an offended expression. He was sick of everyone viewing him as a lovesick puppy. It was true that he had feelings for her, it was true that she wouldn't return them. And those were things he was fully aware of. Things he was trying to accept. He wasn't actively ignoring the facts, trying to live some fantasy where she just didn't realize she loved him yet. Still everyone around him acted like that was how it was. The bottom line was that he wanted her to be safe. "But-"

"Pump your brakes, kid. I know. I know it's easy to hold on to hope and to think that maybe someday she'll come around. Maybe she will. How the fuck should I know? But you know what definitely needs to happen first? We need to deal with Loki. And may I remind you that that is your job. We put ourselves in harm's way all the time. There is a chance you could die doing this, I feel no need to sugar coat that, but one thing we know for sure about that man? He loves himself a good show. He likes to draw things out for his own amusement. You will have time to say those words into your earpiece, and we will come and get him. It's a risky play but it's all we've got. We can't just wait for things to get worse, for him to get stronger. Do you understand?"

Sam pursed his lips, frustrated by the sense that was made. It just so happened that this time it was his turn to make the big play. It had never even occurred to him that the responsibility might fall on him, not even with how involved he was in both his personal and professional lives. Regardless of Fury's views on his relationship with her, he was right.

"Go get her from her room and take her to have dinner with everyone. No doubt she's feeling vulnerable already." Sam hesitated. He didn't want to trick Eve or lie to her. Still, was there another way? Fury was quickly able to recognize that the boy needed a little push. "I can see she means a great deal to you. Don't you want to protect her from that man by any means necessary?" A determined look came across his eyes and when he stood to leave, Fury was confident his agent would get the job done.

After Dinner

Eve reacted instinctively, her heart pounding in her ears. She pulled back on Loki's shoulders, as he had his back to her, but her attempt was in vain. He would not be moved. In fact, he moved closer to Sam, almost to spite her. He stood and lifted the startled agent with him.

"Wait-" Sam began and Loki thrust him into the wall, effectively shutting him up. Eve tried to stop him once more but before she could lay a finger on him, she was thrown backward by an unseen force. She hit the floor and slid for a moment, stunned. "Loki," she pleaded, her voice weak, but he continued to shun her.

He examined the cowardly boy at his mercy and let the anger pulsate through him. "You don't seem so bold now, I see," he repositioned his hand onto Sam's throat and squeezed, lifting him an inch off the ground. "What happened?" He let out a low chuckle and watched his prey squirm. He felt Eve's panic fill the air around them and had no thoughts to console her. He was livid, and her admirer was lucky to still be breathing. Sam made a weak choking sound, his face contorting as he tried desperately to breathe.

"Loki!" Eve nearly screamed as she stood to lunge at him again. She collided with his back and stayed there, shocked that her attempts hadn't been thwarted. Loki stared into the boy's eyes as life began to slip out of them and dropped him carelessly to the ground. His knees buckled immediately and he clamored to the corner of the room, sucking air into his lungs at a furious rate.

Loki turned to his lover now and the look he once bore of being pleased to see her was nowhere to be found. "Why are you so eager to protect him?" He begged to know.

"He's my oldest friend," Eve answered carefully with a few steps back.

"Maybe a bit more than that?" Loki spat, he looked disgusted.

"Stop it," Eve narrowed her eyes. "Let me explain."

"Was I mistaken in what I saw?" He took a step toward her now and she mirrored him by moving further back. "Was it some trick of the light?" Eve neglected to answer, so he returned his attention to Sam. "Tell me, is this just a misunderstanding? Clearly you wouldn't have been trying to woo a woman you know is involved with another." By the end of this sentence he was shouting, unable to comprehend how someone so weak saw fit to encroch on his territory.

Sam inhaled and exhaled evenly before speaking. His hand came up to his cheek and he extended two fingers to touch his earpiece. "You were right," he said.

A/N:

This chapter is a bit short, I know. But I didn't wanna just keep pumping fluff into it and messing up the flow. I think I promised you more Loki in this chapter in the last author's note. Yeah, I just checked, I did say that. Well then when I was writing this it went in another direction, haha. NEXT chapter, lots of angry Loki, which is so much fun ;) Thank youu for reading, thank you for your lovely reviews, they make me so happy!