Note: This feels a bit scrappy but I hope the story smooths out as we go along and the plot picks up. Please note, this story is an AU based on the movie Thor, not the comics or mythology, and also on the first season or so of Being Human. There are also some references to events that happened in my previous Thor/BH crossover, Monsters. Loki's personality in this story is an outgrowth of the previous one.

This should be the last "setup" chapter before things begin to happen. Thanks for your patience, and also for the reads/reviews/alerts so far. You folks are great!

Chapter Two

Loki had managed to close his mouth, but George still had not, when Mitchell and Annie came down the stairs. Loki had not even noticed Annie going up. Mitchell was carrying a nondescript bundle of muddy clothing, greenish trousers and a gray t-shirt, that clearly belonged to the stranger.

"Are you two all right?" Mitchell asked, looking from one to the other. George made a noise that suggested he was still in wolf, or perhaps puppy, form, while Loki nodded as confidently as he could manage. Neither Annie nor Mitchell looked convinced. Loki was actually about to explain matters to his housemates when the stranger came downstairs, wearing the sweatpants and football-club t-shirt Annie had given him, discards from the clothing Annie had scavenged for Loki upon his arrival in Bristol.

(By "arrival," Loki meant "fall from the sky, ending in a thump on the roof of the house and then a tumble to the dustbins in the back garden." The first articles of Midgardian garb Loki had acquired were the result of Annie rummaging through a neighbour's rubbish for relics of a recently-ended relationship. Loki supposed some might consider it undignified for him to continue wearing what amounted to someone else's trash, but he was grateful to Annie for the trouble she took, which coloured his feelings toward the clothing, and so he did not wish to part with it.)

The clothes being worn by the newcomer had been much too large for Loki, but proved an acceptable fit for… for Captain America, who was not quite as tall as Loki, but nearly as broad and muscular as Thor.

"I really appreciate all you've done for me," he said now, his blue eyes earnest. "I promise I won't bother you for much longer."

"Really, it's fine." Mitchell said kindly, and Annie added, "Don't be silly," with a pat on the shoulder that made Captain America flinch in surprise, probably from the unexpected coldness of her hand. Loki experienced a flicker of jealousy, and then a jolt of panic as he ruthlessly squelched it. Jealousy and Loki were, as he knew to his cost, a very bad combination. To make up for it, he turned to Mitchell and offered,

"I am sure both George and our guest are hungry. Perhaps you and Annie could make breakfast while I begin the laundry."

"Oh yeah, that would be great," Mitchell said. "As long as there are no-" he stopped himself just in time from mentioning curses or sea-serpents. Loki smiled his most unnervingly innocent smile and extended his hand for the bundle of clothing. Mitchell passed it over.

As Loki took the bundle he felt a jolt, rather like an electric charge grounding through his body, as magic was drawn from the clothing. Loki's hands jerked, his fingers involuntarily opened, and the clothing dropped from his hands. As they fell, the nondescript shirt and trousers changed, hitting the floor as a vibrant red-white-and-blue costume. Mitchell, Annie and the newcomer looked down at the bundle and then up at each other.

"What the hell-?" Mitchell said.

"Ah, yes," Loki said smoothly. "We were about to mention that."

~oOoOoOo~

"He's Captain America?" Mitchell demanded-unnecessarily, Loki felt, since he and George had already explained their deductions. Loki nodded anyway. "Captain America?"

"Repeating it with different emphases isn't going to change anything," George pointed out, rather grumpily. George was clearly feeling the effects of his long night, in wolf form, in the rain, and he obviously wanted to have a bath and go to bed. Equally obviously, he did not wish to be impolite and abandon their guest before this matter was sorted out.

Their guest seemed to need all the friends he could get at the moment. He sat on the couch with Annie on one side of him and Mitchell on the other, staring at the red-white-and-blue bundle on the floor. He looked shocked and frightened.

"I'm not, though," he protested, very softly, as though to himself. "My name is Steve. Steve Rogers. I'm, I'm just a guy from Brooklyn. I'm not… whoever wears that."

"So you don't remember being one of the Avengers?" Mitchell asked.

Steve shook his head. "The only Avenger I know anything about is the US Navy bomber. Grumman manufactured it. They… they brought it into service right around the same time I joined the Army, in 1942." He rubbed his forehead and used the gesture to try and cover a sneaky swipe at his watering eyes. The others pretended not to notice. "I don't understand any of this. I don't belong here." He glanced around apologetically and added, "I'm glad the war is over, of course I am, but everything is so… strange."

"I imagine it's very disorienting," Mitchell said kindly. Having actually lived through his own hundred years of change he was less bewildered by it than Steve, who had awakened in a completely different time. However, he probably understood some of the other man's confusion.

Annie patted his arm and Steve flinched again. He seemed too confused in general to wonder specifically why Annie's hands were so cold, but just in case it occurred to him to ask, Loki decided a distraction was in order. Steve appeared upset enough without having to process the fact he had been rescued by supernatural beings. Picking up the computer, Loki managed to navigate back to the images he and George had been looking at earlier.

"Steve," he said gently, "I believe something has happened to you that affected your memory. I would like to show you some pictures, of people we believe to be your friends. Perhaps they will aid your recollections."

"Okay," Steve agreed, looking apprehensive. Loki adjusted the images so that a picture of Thor dominated the screen, then crouched in front of Steve and turned the machine to face him.

The reaction was startling: Steve jerked backward with an involuntary gasp that sounded like terror forcing the breath from his lungs. Loki nearly dropped the computer in his haste to turn the screen the other way.

"I'm sorry," he said hastily, standing up and backing away, the closed computer clutched to his chest as though he was restraining it. "I didn't expect-" He didn't expect anyone to be afraid of Thor, let alone as terrified as this. Steve's pupils were dilated and he seemed actually frozen in place, as if too frightened to even attempt to flee. It took him a moment to even be able to speak.

"It's not your fault," Steve said breathlessly. "I don't even know why that scared me so much. I don't know who he is. I just… I just had this feeling."

"You're all right," Annie promised him. "You're safe."

"I know," Steve mumbled. "I do know. I just don't…"

The housemates looked at each other helplessly. Loki hated to leave Steve alone in this condition, but a meeting of housemates definitely appeared to be in order.

"Steve, would you please excuse us for a moment?" he requested, and led the others into the kitchen. On second thought, given the presumed superpowers possessed by Captain America, Loki ushered everyone into the back garden where there was less chance of being overheard.

"That's a superhero?" George whispered. Annie punched his arm. "Well-"

"It is very strange that he's so… spooked," Mitchell agreed. "I mean, these guys have faced some pretty amazing things. Whatever was out there in that storm must have been really bad."

Loki shook his head. "I do not think that is the explanation. I do not think he is afraid of anything specific. I think a spell has been cast upon him."

"Oh dear," Annie said, with admirable restraint. Mitchell's comment was more colourful. George removed his spectacles and tiredly rubbed his eyes.

"Of course it has," he sighed.

"That certainly explains his clothes," Annie added. "How did you take the spell off them, Loki? And can you… de-spell… him the same way?"

Loki shook his head. "I fear not, because I did not do anything. When I touched the clothing, the magic… jumped to me. Some enchantments do not remain long on inanimate objects."

"Okay, hang on a minute, are you saying now the spell is on you?" George demanded in alarm.

"Apparently not," Loki replied. "The magical energy simply passed into me, because I was able to receive it. The form of the spell did not. The trouble is, because Steve is alive, the magic remains upon him in the shape in which it was cast."

"Can you remove it?" Mitchell asked. Loki shook his head.

"Not without knowing what manner of spell it is, or at least something about the sorcerer. Without such knowledge, there is a real possibility of something going terribly wrong."

"Oh, well that's just lovely," George grumbled. He glanced at Loki's expression and looked abashed. "I'm sorry, Loki, I didn't mean to snarl at you. It's just… what do we do now?"

Annie spoke up. "Should we tell him? He's scared enough already, without knowing someone put a curse on him." Loki bit his lip and did not try to argue with Annie about whether this particular spell counted as a curse.

Her argument made sense to Loki: it appeared no real good could come of trying to explain matters to Steve. However, as a liar by inclination Loki realized that he might not be the best judge of the situation. Any time he was put in a circumstance that felt uncomfortable or unpredictable, his instinct was to try to lie his way out of it. This did not always turn out to be the wisest course, and so he was willing to listen when Mitchell argued,

"I think he needs to know. Loki, you think the fear is actually created by the spell?" Loki nodded. Mitchell went on, "It might help him to know that. I think he's partly afraid of the fact he is so afraid, if you see what I mean. The fact he's scared for what seems like no reason at all."

The others nodded. George voiced what they were all thinking:

"Do you think we need to tell him… about us? About what we are?"

"I can't imagine he'd believe us," Annie pointed out. "I think the magic is going to be a hard enough sell without werewolves and vampires and ghosts, oh my."

"Oh my," Loki agreed. "We should also consider how we would go about proving we are speaking the truth. I could easily cast a harmless spell, and I suppose Annie could disappear, but with the full moon past George really has no way of demonstrating what manner of being he is, and Mitchell…" Loki trailed off, looking apologetically at Mitchell.

"Right," Mitchell agreed. He could, of course, put on a show of fangs and predatory blackened eyes as proof he was a vampire, but once seen, that image was extremely difficult to put out of one's mind. As Annie had said, Steve was frightened enough already.

"We are, however, trying to convince him he is a… a superhero," Loki said thoughtfully.

"Yeah," George agreed. "Six impossible things before breakfast." When Loki looked blank, George added, "I don't think you've read that book yet. I'll tell you later. What I mean is, he knows about the Avengers, so also telling him about the magic isn't quite as much of a stretch as it might be otherwise."

Mitchell said, "The question is just how far we can make him stretch before he-"

"Snaps," George completed the sentence.

"Perhaps we should limit the explanation to what is strictly necessary," Loki suggested. "Since magic is involved, he should know that I am a sorcerer who is on his side. He may then guess the rest of you are also supernatural beings. If so, you can confirm it, but I don't think there is any need to belabour that matter right now. Or offer proof, if the proof would be more frightening than the uncertainty."

"Okay," Mitchell said. "Are we agreed? Loki tells him about the magic and we keep quiet about the rest of it for now?" Everyone nodded. "Great. And what do we do after that?"

Loki chewed on his lower lip. "I had thought we could simply send a message to Thor and ask him to come here and collect Steve, but that no longer seems like a wise idea."

"No," Mitchell agreed. "Not when the sight of his face sent Steve into such a panic."

"I find it hard to believe anyone could be that frightened of your brother," Annie remarked. "Magic or no magic."

"I had the same thought," Loki admitted. "For centuries I believed Thor to be a thickheaded idiot, but I never imagined anyone could see him as anything but kindly-disposed." He thought for a moment, then looked up at the sky and said in a conversational tone, "Heimdall, if you can hear me, I need to speak to Thor at some location apart from this house. Perhaps he could come see me at work. We have found his friend Steve, who is unharmed but appears to be in need of assistance. If you wish to explain matters more fully, that would be much appreciated. It will be necessary to prepare Steve for Thor's arrival, so that it will not be alarming to him. Thank you, Heimdall." He looked back at his friends to find Mitchell smothering a grin. "What?"

"Sorry. It's just… Asgardian voicemail…" Mitchell snickered. With an effort, he sobered and added, "Will that message get to Thor?"

"If he is in Asgard, yes. If not, I am not sure what to do."

"Shame he doesn't carry a mobile," George said.

"But Jane Foster does," Loki remembered. "And Jane is associated with SHIELD, the agency that works with the Avengers. We can send her a message explaining matters, and then SHIELD will dispatch a representative here. I have no idea whether that organization has agents competent to deal with magical occurrences, but if they do not we can offer our assistance."

"Great," Mitchell said slowly. "That sounds… that sounds great."

Loki frowned. "You do not sound 'great.' What is it?"

Mitchell shrugged helplessly. "I just have this sensation of 'famous last words.'"

George glared. "Thank you, Mitchell. That's very helpful."