Disclaimer: I do not own Avengers, but I want to.

Kayla was lying on a bed as she slowly regained conscious. She groaned as she touched her head, eyes still closed. Abruptly, a piece of metal touched her side. She sat up and gasped as her hand flew in front of her. Tiny, razor sharp ice darts flew from all sides of her. Kayla saw Bruce pressed up against a wall, medical equipment in his hand. She swatted the air and the darts evaporated. "Sorry!" she squeaked ashamedly.

Bruce peeled himself off the wall. "No problem," he replied. "I was just going to check for internal damage."

"Ok, go ahead." Bruce continued to probe the side of her stomach. "It looks like you're clear. It might be sore, but that is expected when you get punched by a god. Try to rest that. And don't say you will. From what I've seen, you won't."

"Yeah, you're probably right. I promise I'll get a good night sleep tonight, but I have work to do now." She hopped off the bed, then added unsteadily, "Actually. If you have any pain killers, that'd be great too."

She took the offered pills dry, but as she hopped off the bed, Bruce asked, "Did you find anything in Loki's head?"

Kayla hesitated, then said slowly, "No, nothing of importance."

She continued down to where Loki was confined. When she reached the door, she paused, then buried herself in a crevice between two lockers. She pulled a white leather box out of a pocket in her black jacket. It was the kind of box you would expect a ring to be placed in. When she opened it, there were just four stones adorning inside, which was coated in satin. She fingered each one carefully.

The stones were about the size of dimes, and different colors: gentle blue, dark green, soft brown, and light purple. Kayla remembered a series of flickering images. A hand shoving the box into her's, her mother telling her to run, a flash of blue light, a woman's scream, a crash, a bronze staff, beautiful green eyes. She remembered turning to run away from the man with the green eyes, bursting out the back door, running into her backyard, tripping over a piece of wood, pulling herself under a bush. That's when it had started. The frost creeping down her arm, spreading across the ground. She remembered escaping though a hole under the fence she had dug. After that, it blurred together.

She blinked, then closed the box and clenched it in her fist. Checking to see if anyone was coming, she pulled herself out of the crevice. She walked into the confinement room and right up against the glass. She and Loki regarded one another for a bit, then Loki spoke. "Here to play more mind games?"

"Maybe... Actually, I just wanted to ask you something. Do you recognize these stones?" She pulled out the box.

Loki studied it for a moment, then whispered, "Yes."

"How? How do you know these? Tell me!" Her calm voice turned wild.

"I remember seeing the stones in a woman's hand. I remember the box in your hand. The woman gave the box with the stones to a small girl. I killed her. I killed the woman because I wished so badly to possess the stones before someone else held them for too long."

"Tell me. Tell me why you wanted these." Kayla's breaths were ragged and shaky.

"These stones were created by several Frost Giants. The stones were said to contain unspeakable power. But now I know that is just a legend."

"No... It's not a legend. These abilities I have started the night you came to my house. The night you ruining my life." Kayla voice began to shake.

"How did you know to ask me?"

"Because the only thing I remember about the man was his green eyes."

"Many men have green eyes." Loki reminded the distraught girl.

"Not eyes like yours." Kayla whispered.

The green eyes gazed curiously at her, then softened. "We have something in common, Miss Secc. I am a frost giant. My parents were killed ruthlessly by the Æsir. I was brought up believing I was one of them." Loki murmured.

"People brought me in and pretended I was normal. They were kind, and one house tried to pretend I was their daughter. I didn't stay long."

"Then... I think we can understand one another, Kayla." Loki's eyes were beautiful and empathetic.

Kayla snapped the leather box closed, and the cold mask swooped over her face again. Not a hint of emotion could be read on her face. Loki looked disappointed that Kayla did not reply.

As she walked from the room, Loki called to her, "Kayla!"

She spun on her heel. "What?! What could you possibly want to say to me?"

"Just that... I'm sorry." "I know who you are, Loki. The Trickster. The Doer of Good and The Doer of Evil. The God of Mischief and Lies. Don't think for a second that I'm going to believe that you're sorry!" Kayla's voice started quiet, but rose to a shout. "I know the legends! You were only a baby when the Æsir attacked Jotunheim. It was different for you! I was aware that my mother was killed... By you!" Kayla's mask had melted and had been replaced by cold anger.

"Kayla, please. I know that I can never bring your mother back, but let me make it up to you. Legends says that the owner will receive special gifts, but the stones can be used. Not just as weapons that stay in your pocket, but they can be controlled... harnessed. Let me show you how to use them." Loki's voice was calm and comforting.

"If you think that I'm letting you out of that cage, you're out of your flipping mind." Kayla snarled menacingly. With that, she was gone.

Loki's cry of "Kayla, wait!" was wasted on empty air.

Well, that's that chapter! Please review! I live on these reviews! :)