"Loki?" Thor stared at the sleeping human in his brother's bed. When the dark haired God walked out of the bathroom, he gave the Thunder God warning glare. "What is going on?" He whispered as he pointed to your sleeping form. "Why is she here? There? In your bed? Everyone is looking for her."
"She was so terrified by what happened she ceased to be able to speak, with that issue, she could not state which as her floor, ergo to get her to rest somewhere comfortable, I was forced to bring her here." Thor raised a brow and folded his arms, staring at Loki sceptically. "If I had left her in the common area to rest, you would all being going mad that I treated her no better than a hound." Thor could not argue that.
"Why did you state she was here?"
"Because if I had, they would have dragged her from here in an instant, do not deny it Thor, she needed to rest."
Thor eyed his brother carefully. "Why Loki? Why care for one human when you despise all others? This goes far beyond feeling some small bit of guilt for having accidentally not realised about her sight."
"It was the right thing to do Thor, do not read too much into it." Loki turned so he was no longer facing his brother, but his eyes lingered on you as he said it, and Thor caught it.
"You did well Loki, thank you." He clapped Loki's shoulder as he spoke.
X
It kept replaying over and over in your mind, the sound of gunshots, the thud of each one against the concrete, not inches from your body. Then there was the shouting, over and over, your mind trying to decipher the different voices and words. When you processed them, they all were threats to Loki, though he had done nothing wrong. The voices of those who had sought him in the first place, there was something about them, something you could not place. The growling angered voice of the leader, it seemed so…similar. As again and again you winced at the sound of bullets, you felt yourself in the moment where the canister hit against your foot, the last thing you would ever see, was a small silver and black metal object, right next to your feet, then, white light, and finally darkness, and pain. But amongst it all, something came to you; the name, 'Hodgens" it stuck in your mind, why was it relevant, the manner in which the leader had spoken, it played over and over in your mind, until…You wanted to cry, you wanted to forget it ever happened, and when the hand grabbed you again, the one that tried to pry you away from Loki, this time your voice had not failed you, and you shrieked, again and again.
You jumped awake, you felt hot, and sweaty, and the two steams of water on your face told you that you were crying. You felt yourself shaking violently, terrified as everything replayed in your mind once more. When you felt a hand on your arm again, similar to the one that had grabbed you; you did not hesitate, and thrashed violently, your fists colliding with something over and over.
"Hey, hey."
You heard a voice trying to calm you, but it was futile, you were too terrified, your mind replaying what had happened. "Loki." It was the only thing your mind would focus on, when no one else was there to help you, Loki had been. "Loki." You begged.
The hand quickly left your arm, leaving you to thrash the air around you; your breaths coming in rapid pants as you tried to figure out where you were. Nothing seemed right, the bed was harder than you were used to and the scent in the room was wrong, yet not as terrifying as it should have been. It took a few minutes, but you were able to place it, you were in Loki's rooms, you remembered that now, and though you could not recall going there yourself, you appeared to be in a bed, which smelt strongly of Loki, leaving you to assume it was his. "She is looking for you." You knew the voice, but your brain was not computing whose it was.
"Me?"
That one you recognised instantly. "Loki!" You searched around for him.
"Good to see you got your voice back." There was no way to deny there was relief in his voice.
"The people, the ones with the guns, they…"
"They have left. Stark has dealt with them, and with the security breech."
"Tony, wait Thor." You finally recognised who else was in the room with you both. "How long have I been asleep?" To say the Avengers were back from New Zealand, you had to have been asleep for longer than you thought.
"Near a day." Loki informed you.
"But how?"
"Stress, I stated to you before you fell asleep, the events of yesterday were exhausting you, you simply proved me right."
"You are elated by it, don't deny it, you love being proved right." You groaned as you sat up in the bed. "Is this your bed?"
"Yes."
"Where did you sleep?"
"I have not slept."
"Why?"
"Well for one, you were in here, for another, I had to ensure there were no more issues until the fools returned."
"Loki." Thor warned.
"If you think I will refer to that group of misfits as anything else, you are sadly mistaken." Loki growled back.
"What happened?" It did not take sight to know that clearly there had been issues in the time you were resting.
"You cannot blame them Loki, considering." Thor began.
"The men…" Though you wished to set the record straight about how Loki had actually assisted you, you had other issues to deal with first. "The ones that came first?"
"What of them?" Thor asked.
"Where are they?"
"They were dealt with by SHIELD, they are a unit who decided it best to deal with Loki quietly without informing the Director Fury."
"They are the ones who…" You swallowed hard. "They were the ones, that day, in the lab." Silence resounded around you. "I recognised his voice, the leader, he was there that day, so was Hodgens I remember them and that name."
"You stated already the flash bomb detonated before they entered the room, you cannot have seen them." Thor stated dismissively.
"I never claimed to see them, I heard them." You barked back angrily.
"I fear you are mistaken, they are SHIELD agents, they would not attack their own colleagues."
Frustration caused new tears to well in your eyes, you knew you were right, but Thor was not listening, and you would wager the Avengers would not either. "Loki." The other God remained silent, though you could feel him looking at you. "I know it was them, I know it."
"Loki, you cannot honestly believe…"
"I was not there that day to contradict her, and neither were you or the rest of your pathetic allies. If she states such, then perhaps you should listen." The raven haired God answered.
"I am not sure." Thor rubbed the back of his neck. "This may not sit well with the others."
"Because of course, that is all that matters here." Growled Loki. He shook his head and turned back to you. "Can you walk?" You nodded. "Then I suggest you get out of that bed and declare what you stated here to the rest of them, perhaps one of them will possess enough intelligence to consider the possibility, for I fear you are wasting your breath here." Loki extended his hand, allowing it to gently brush against your arm. Though you really did not require assistance, his offering, rather than insisting on helping caused you to accept it willingly. Thor simply watched intently, not saying anything.
Somehow you were still tired, and as a result not too steady on your feet, but also quite hungry and in need of a shower. Ordinarily you would never consider going to the common area stinking of sweat, but you felt it necessary to inform the Avengers of your realisation. In truth, you were slightly fearful that they would dismiss you as simply as Thor had, especially Romanov and Barton, who were technically comrades of those you were about to accuse, but you knew you were right, and perhaps, in amongst it all, you would get justice for what had happened you.
Using Loki to allow you go at a swifter pace, you were able to get to the elevator quicker than you usually walked, the two Gods directing you safely at corners and steps as you went. When you heard the elevator doors close, you took a moment to compose yourself, preparing for whatever lay ahead, and hoping that your statement would be accepted.
On arriving in the common area, you sensed the aggression in the air.
"Where the hell had you her hidden?"
"What the hell has been going on?"
"Explanations, now."
The demands all came at once, something you knew would happen, but still, tired, stressed and over sensitive, it was an assault on your mind. "Stop." You ordered loudly, and for some miraculous reason, those gathered complied. "Loki saved my life. When those…whoever they were came, Loki made sure he got me to a safe place, and protected me. Then after everything, ensured I did not go into shock."
"I fear you may have regardless." The God stated.
"Okay, fine, prevented my shock from being worse and made sure I was cared for, better?"
"Yes."
You rolled your eyes at his meticulous need for accuracy. "So lay off Loki, he actually deserves some kudos for everything he did for me. But that is not the issue, the people who came here first, the instigators who hacked Tony's system, they are the ones that attacked SHIELD a few months ago, they are the ones that came into the lab that day."
"What?" Barton may have only stated one word, but it was clear from it he was not the least bit convinced. "Johnsons' unit is one of the most elite in SHIELD, hence how they got in here. They would never do such a thing." He scoffed.
"Kiddo, you said you only saw the flash bomb that day, no people, and you cannot possibly confirm it was the same people again regardless, you could not have seen them with, you know…." Stark stated cautiously.
"I have ears, there are more senses than just sight that tell you who is around you." You could begin to sense that this was going to be a lesson in futility. "I know it was them, Hodgens was there both times, this Johnson barked orders at him in the lab too. I remember it."
"You never said anything of Hodgens before now." Romanov commented sceptically.
"Forgive my not having an eidetic memory." You growled. "I am only saying this to try and get some answers; SHIELD never was able to figure out who was behind it."
"Are the answers for SHIELD or for you?" Rogers asked. "We get it, you want to get who caused this to happen to you, but you can't say for certain it was that unit."
"Were you there?" Loki demanded, staring coldly at Rogers. "That day, in the lab, as you call it. Were you there?" Rogers shook his head. "Were any of you there by any chance?" He looked around at the rest of the Avengers; none of them said anything, indicating they had not been. "Well since you cannot say for certain that it was not these people, perhaps you should at least entertain the fact that you have been told otherwise, and until such time as you can prove what is being stated is completely false, you should listen to what is being stated by one that was there." There was a pregnant pause in any responses to the Gods interjection. "And should you not be concerning yourself how your supposedly perfect system was not only overridden by these people, but ultimately shut down. From what I have gathered, the distress beckon only called out once, meaning had they been but a few moments faster, they would have succeeded in blocking it altogether and you could have been none the wiser to its corruption until your return, with me gone, who would have been there to protect her?" He glared at Stark.
"Listen Reindeer Games, I have found the virus that was in the system and dealt with it accordingly, including sending a little care package back to the source. I do not need you or anyone else for that matter trying to pin this on my system." Stark was far shorter than the God, but he still stood as tall as possible in facing him off. He seemed calm, but inside he was seething, whoever dared to play with his system was going to pay, dearly.
"No, since it was the Good Captains credentials used in the break in. Tell me, is he not under your little spotlight, it is after all, noteworthy that he, and those two." He indicated to Romanov and Barton. "Are hired by this SHIELD, I think you need to concern yourself with having the rodents within your walls of your own doing."
"What do you think you are implying?" Barton stepped forward, his grip on his bow tightening as he did so.
"Funny, I suggest something that you think could be preposterous and it is taken to heart, yet something just as plausible, if not more so, is suggested by someone of higher intelligence than most everyone else in this room, and it is dismissed immediately as nonsense." Again, silence followed his statement. "I think it safe to say, you have all been warned, I will be interested to see what your little gift will uncover." He stated to Stark before he turned to leave again. "Now, I am going to get some rest, since I have to guard this dwelling due to your lack of ability to keep seemingly friend and foe out in your absence."
As the elevator doors closed once more, Stark took a drink of his coffee. "He really is beginning to annoy me with his statements recently, that one is going to fester too. Kiddo?" You faced where you assumed he was. "Are you sure?"
"I would wager my other four senses on it." You stated with conviction.
"Well then, I think I better do some snooping." He walked passed with his coffee, patting your shoulder as he did so. "We'll get them for what they did to you, I promise."