Ooooh my God. I don't know what happened here. I royally screwed up, and I'm sorry. This chapter should be, um, in a kinda coherent english. I don't have a Beta, so there are mistakes. Forgive me. I have zero excuses, the thing is, I divided the chapters differently in Ao3, because they keep getting really long. Um, I may have copied and pasted from Ao3 without revising the format or anything, really. Sorry. Sorry Sorry! *read that in Tom Hiddleston's voice*
"Before this war is over,' [Walter] said - or something said through his lips - 'every man and woman and child (...) will feel it(...). You will weep tears of blood over it. The Piper has come - and he will pipe until every corner of the world has heard his awful and irresistible music. It will be years before the dance of death is over. And in those years millions of hearts will break."
― L.M. Montgomery, Rilla of Ingleside
Six months had gone by since Darcy's last mission with Loki, and man, she had been busy. SHIELD now trusted her and gave her diplomatic missions within the planet and without Loki, whom had been on his own missions in Asgard. No one better than the God of Lies to know when a traitor was plotting. She and Loki had been exchanging letters via Jane. Letters. Goddamn twenty-first century, lots of technology at the tip of everyone's fingers, and they were exchanging handwritten letters and books. He didn't have a phone,and even when he could steal one, if Odin found it Loki was going back to a white cell in the depths of the dungeons. Besides, Loki thought that phones were primitive.
Handwritten letters were safer, and Loki valued too much the freedom he was earning to fuck it up for a phone.
Jane, the "messenger owl", was stubbornly living between Asgard and Earth, combining her duties as a princess and a mother with her duties as a scientist and pioneer on interdimensional travel and weaponry (at least on Earth).
With a lot of hard work and a lot of fights on her favor, plus a nasty wound in her leg, Darcy had earned some days off. The intensity and imminent danger of battle had reduced a lot after Thanos faced some important defeats in which, Darcy was proud to say, she and Loki had helped gathering intel. For Darcy, days off meant quality time with Jane, the closest thing to a sister she had. It was a shame that Darcy's idea of quality time was miles away from Jane's idea of the very same thing.
Currently, both the scientist and the ambassador/bodyguard/friend were struggling with some heavy equipment in the middle of the desert. More precisely in the middle of the Malargüe desert, in Argentina. They were sleeping in Jane's old motor home and every day the Pierre Auger Observatory (God forbid the mispronunciation of the name) sent someone with food and water. The astrophysicists in the Observatory wanted Jane building the potential Einstein Rosen bridge in there, because the power required to turn it on "attracted" a lot of the ultra-high-energy cosmic rays that the scientists were still investigating. Needless to say, Jane had signed more autographs in there than in her entire life. Needless to say, Darcy hadn't been able to even take a proper look at the motherfrikin' Andes, with Jane completely absorbed by the research. They had no cell phones, no tv, not even a radio. It was a forced retreat that made Darcy remember her old internship days, but with less beer craving at night.
1.200 square miles of absolutely nothing but nature and astrophysics.
The night had just fallen, and with it came a cooler breeze and the first stars in the sky. Darcy was pointing some weird looking machines upwards and Jane was lying under a big piece of equipment, poking it with a screwdriver, a flashlight attached to her head. The desert was a strange place to be, especially if you had been a long time surrounded by loud noises. Darcy's ears weren't used to the deep silence in the desert, and she perceived a lot more sounds, the ground crunching under her boots, Jane huffing under her homemade equipment, her own breathing...it was almost magical. Like a place outside the real world. It made her feel good, not like in the past when all she wanted was parties and graduation.
"So you are saying you don't have a special relationship with Loki?" Said Jane innocently, for the umpteenth time. She seemed to think that asking the same question over and over again in the most random circumstances was going to force "the truth" out of Darcy. She sighed.
"Stop it, Jane. I'm not changing my answer."
"Not that you ever gave me one." Came the muffled response from her friend.
"If you want something cheesy and heart melting you can go read fanfiction. God knows there are a lot about the Avengers. I could read you a couple of them where you and Thor get naughty and everything. And by naughty I mean..."
"I don't want a fanfiction answer", Jane interrupted. Darcy rolled her eyes and continued arranging stuff. "I want the truth."
Darcy finished with her task before answering.
"Look, you are my best friend, and the fact that I have been here with you for a week without any resemblance of social interaction or whatsoever proves it. There is literally nothing that I wouldn't tell you. I'm gonna say this once: nothing is happening between Loki and me. I am trying to focus on winning a war against a dude that cannot die, so you tell me, do I look like I have time to fall for an ex super villain?"
Jane crawled from under the machine -how the woman could not care about the dirt staining her favourite jacket was beyond Darcy- and came out the other side, standing up and thoroughly dusting off her clothes. Then she crossed her arms and stared at her friend with a pointed look.
"Darcy Lewis, for the past six months you and Loki have been using me. I am not a nosy person and you know it, but the letters are becoming fatter and fatter. I know he is up to something with you, I just know. He even talks to Thor now! Without stabbing, almost no yelling and just a little bit of bickering. What the hell?"
Darcy rolled her eyes.
"Oh my God Jane, listen to me: any changes Loki is making are not thanks to me. He goes to therapy for that, remember? Besides, what has Thor to do with this? I am not a miracle worker or a rehab center. We are friends. Even best friends, because I trust him with my life. Love? Nah, love is not that."
"Then what is it? What is love?" Jane was very invested in the topic, a sly expression on her face.
"I don't know, okay? Loki doesn't even like coffee! He lives in a monarchy! I'm sorry Jane but you know how I feel about monarchies. Loki loves monarchies. He actually tried to become king. Our letters are mostly about strategy, history..." And okay yeah, some gossip and actual personal information. Loki wasn't too sharing, and she had the same failure, but somehow they could read each other perfectly. But there was no way they could be more than friends.
Jane stared at her skeptically.
"Your argument is so freaking weak it scares me. You were in a debate club or something at University, I know because I read your CV at some point. Have you considered the thought that maybe you have this idea of love that is at least fifty percent wrong? Also, I don't protect my letters with a spell so no one can read them."
Darcy gaped for a moment, eyes widening. She didn't even knew Loki did that with his letters.
"W...we all know that he has trust issues. Still. My point stands. Love is not like what we have."
"Since you still are in denial, I will not ask you anymore. But when I finally see you two together, I'm gonna say I told you so, and I'm gonna enjoy it."
"What, are you happy now with the idea of us together? Since when you started liking Loki?"
Jane laughed a little.
"Since he saved your ass countless times, and let you do your thing without controlling or manipulating you like I thought he would try to do. Don't get me wrong, I still think he's crazy, really crazy, but now I don't think he's batshit crazy anymore."
Darcy tried to reply to that, but suddenly the air shimmered for a moment and Loki stumbled forward, accidentally dropping some of the equipment. Darcy felt her heart sink, and kneeled beside him. His breathing was labored, and he groaned quietly when she spoke.
"Loki? What the hell is happening!"
Her brain was going into major freak out mode. Why had she taken those days off again? Oh, right, her leg still healing...so she had chosen the only freaking place on Earth with no way of communicating with the rest of the world. Fuck. Fuck.
"Thanos…" He coughed. "Thanos regrouped...and attacked Asgard…"
Beside her, Jane gasped.
"The kids…" She whispered, and had to brace herself against the device she had been fixing minutes ago.
Seeing Jane like that triggered something in Darcy, something deep inside her that only came out when one of her dearest friends was in immediate danger and she was present: her stress died and was replaced by certain detachment, something that allowed her to think before acting.
"Can you teleport us there?" She asked, and automatically helping Loki to sit down, her eyes calculating, a frown in her forehead.
"Not the two of you at the same time. The twins are safe, but they are still inside the castle and the place is not secure enough for soldiers that are looking specifically people with royal blood. You have to hide them in our refuge in Asgard, Darcy. That is the only place Thanos' soldiers cannot freely attack, because nobody knows about it. Go to our refuge in Asgard and hide them there."
The idea of taking them to the refuge had crossed Darcy's mind, so she nodded.
"Alright, then take us to Asgard. Take Jane first, leave her in the palace with the kids and then I'll keep them safe."
Loki nodded and put a hand in her shoulder, helping himself up and then thrusting his hand to help her up. When she did, he didn't let go and instead looked at her right into the eye.
"You will be careful." He stated, dominant as usual. His hand was firm and cold against her skin. Darcy nodded again, reassuring him.
"I will. Now, go."
Loki rolled his eyes and promptly disappeared with Jane.
As soon as he was gone, Darcy went to the van and packed stuff in her battlepack: her fighting-gear and clothes, bullets, throwing knives, her favourite firearmes, some food, her cellphone and the black cloak she had stolen from Asgard. She heard Loki calling her outside and hesitated for a second before grabbing Dorothy as well. It was too big for running around with it, but hopefully that would give them time in case they were under attack.
Her leg wouldn't let her run to Loki, and he frowned when she walked to him.
"What happened?" He asked sharply, and Darcy shrugged.
"A dude tried to stab me in a solo mission and got my leg. It is not that bad, but it needed some stitches. This is why I'm here. SHIELD kinda forced me to come here and stay away from action."
Loki rolled his eyes and took something out of his pocket.
" Uncover the wound." He ordered.
There was a moment of silence, not even broken by crickets like she expected.
"Dude." Darcy said, and there was no answer. "What the hell?"
"You intend to go into battle with a wound in your leg that puts you in even more danger?"
He was right. She was in pain, and as much as she had been trying to avoid acknowledging it, the wound was pretty bad and the stitches one too many.
"Just…" She gestured in embarrassment and pulled down her pants, uncovering the sewn gash on her right thigh.
He got to his knees and smirked at her from below. A full dirty smirk that she knew he was doing on purpose, just to play with her. It did nameless things to her brain and body. He had done similar stuff in his letters, and Darcy had a hard time debating with herself if she liked those moments or not. She hadn't come to a conclusion. Yet. She thought.
"Oh, shut the hell up dude!" Darcy blushed furiously and he crushed a healing stone between his fingers. Still smirking, he smeared the dust in her wound with soft strokes and Darcy watched, amazed, as the gash closed definitely and the stitched disappeared. Once it was over, she buttoned up the jeans without looking at him.
"Ready to go, c'mon." She flunged the heavy bag over her shoulder, but before she could do anything he took her hands in his. When he spoke, his voice carried the weight of knowledge and uncertainty at the future.
"Darcy, this is the final battle. This is the last of Thanos. His last soldiers, last weaponry, everything. He has attacked with the last -and best- of his forces, and he will not stop until the last of his army is dead at his feet. Be careful."
"Oh my God, Loki, I am always careful." He threw a pointed look at her leg and she rolled her eyes. "I'm gonna take good care of my best friend and her children by leaving them in a cave with weaponry and food, after I get changed in better clothes. What are you gonna do about Thanos?" She asked worriedly. Loki wasn't completely recovered from Thanos' brainwashing, and more than once a week he woke up with a scream ragging his throat. Not that he ever told her that, but she had her ways of knowing (meaning Thor). But at her words, Loki smiled slowly, until all his perfectly white teeth were exposed.
"When I find him, he will find out." He took her hands in his and squeezed.
Darcy tried to find fear of him inside her, but knew she wouldn't. She wanted Thanos to suffer for every single life he had taken, and there was nothing Loki could do she would think undeserved.
"Succeed, Smartypants. And don't take too long." She said simply, and could see Loki's lips quirking up before disappearing.
When Loki told them that Asgard was under attack, he meant it. The smoke wouldn't let her see clearly around her, and when she inhaled an acrid smell made her eyes tear up. People were screaming and running everywhere, blind to their surroundings and focused only on escaping the chaos.
"I am going to make us invisible. That means you won't be able to see yourself and your weaponry. Can you still fight?"
Darcy rolled her eyes. Her stomach knotted at the sight of the battle, more than usual. This time, there was no room for mercy, or anything really. And she asked herself, in the back of her mind, at which point in her life she had grown used to fight and kill other people.
"Yes. Do it."
Loki grabbed one of her hands and put the other over her head for a moment, frowning in concentration. Darcy gripped the straps of her backpack as tightly as she could, eyes closed, feeling the familiar texture of it. Loki's hand was large and cold, his fingertips barely grazing her hair. They were close, and she could faintly smell the leather of his armour over the smoke. It kept her focused.
"Done." He whispered, and Darcy looked up to him to see only air. She could feel him closer, but suddenly he started running towards the castle and she swore while trying to keep up.
There were barely thirty feet away when she heard an explosion going off and the force of the blast threw her to the ground. Loki didn't let go of her and pulled her up.
"You recovered your powers?" She asked, suddenly remembering he wasn't supposed to be able to do something like making them invisible.
"Odin's magic is depleted, and he is using the surplus normally dedicated to keep my most powerful magic away in the fight against Thanos."
"A yes would have been enough, ya know?" She quipped, and they reached the palace.
Inside, the ruin was even worse. Her eyes got caught in the dress of a court maid, tore in half, blood-stained and abandoned there, its owner absent. For some reason, that image stayed with her.
Loki guided her through narrow hallways, dimly lit and covered in dust,but they were not crossing enemies. Somehow, the eerie silence around her was even more oppressive than the commotion of the battle.
They reached a black door that had no signs and Loki stopped and let go of her hand, murmuring something that made her visible one more time. He raised his arms, said a few words and the door opened, revealing Jane, Thyra and Haldor. Jane was holding a small knife, one that she lowered as soon as she saw Loki and Darcy.
"Thank God…" Jane said, and embraced her friend.
"You're welcome." Answered Loki, and Darcy laughed briefly.
Another explosion sounded far away, and the kids braced each other, eyes light up with fury and fear.
"I cannot teleport with all of you at the same time. The distance is too much for my powers right now." Loki stated.
Darcy knew Jane wouldn't accept being separated from her children, not even for two minutes, but then an idea hit her head with the force of a moving train.
"Could you...put a spell on objects that could teleport us to the safe place?" She suggested, and looked at Loki.
He narrowed his eyes at her, and then openly smiled, his green eyes shining with enthusiasm.
"I never thought about it, but actually yes. It shouldn't bee too depleting, and you can touch the things at the same time and arrive safely to the refuge…Miss Darcy, you are quite the intelligent mortal." He finished, his smile now mischievous. Darcy felt something squirming in delight inside her and shook her head.
"I got the idea from Harry Potter, so go and compliment J.K Rowling."
"Here, have the knife" Jane said, handing it to him. A faint green light enveloped the knife and then Loki placed it on the ground. He did the same with Thyra's necklace and Haldor's replica of Mjolnir. When the three of them were settled, Jane took a step forward and Loki instructed them.
"The three of you will teleport on your own, and I'll teleport with Miss Darcy. You will land in the area surrounding the refuge. I have placed magical wards in a twenty feet radio, so do not go further. Darcy is the only one who can trespass safely and the wards will know if she's in danger with you. Now, touch your teleporters at the same time, and make sure to hide until she arrives."
The three of them nodded, and in a moment they were gone. Darcy was about to grab Loki's hands when he stopped her.
"I have to come back and fight. Thor and the Avengers are out there, and also Thanos. You however, will stay with Jane and her children."
Darcy clenched her fists.
"So now you're ordering me around and thinking you're gonna fight without me?" She asked through gritted teeth.
"You have to stay with the royal fa-
"They are going to be safe . You're making this shit up because you think I am-
"What?" He snapped. "Mortal? You are mortal. You are a fragile human, and this is not a fight for the likes of you."
Darcy slapped him, surprising Loki and herself with the force of her hand.
"No fight in these years has been remotely similar to the ones 'the likes of me' has had! And Thanos has destroyed millions of lives around the galaxy. Don't fucking tell me what to do, Loki!"
"You can't go!" He yelled.
"Why the fuck do you think-
" I won't lose you!" He interrupted, face inches away from hers, his breathing ragged. "I won't loose my…" he hesitated, and Darcy felt her heart fluttering. "My best friend. I can't, and I won't." He finished.
Disappointment sat deep in her chest, and Darcy took a step back, suddenly feeling him too close, and herself too exposed. She hadn't realized…
It took but a moment for him to grab her hand and appear at the forest. That area seemed untouched by the battle, and Darcy knew it had something to do with Loki's abilities.
" What if I lose you?" She said, and Loki avoided her eyes. There was an uncomfortable moment, and then she went on. "If you don't come back in two hours, I am going to go out and look for you. Give me something to teleport back to the entrance of the castle. Promise me on your life that it will work." She said simply, her voice expressionless.
"Or what?" He said, and Darcy raised her chin.
"You know it is the right thing to do. I'll stay with Jane, but I won't miss the final battle. I have to be there, and you know it. It is my choice to do this and you have to respect it. It'll be night in two hours, and then I'll be safer. I'll look for you."
Loki stared intently at her, and somehow Darcy knew she had won that argument. He cleared his throat and a necklace appeared in his hands. It was silver thread, with a strange pendant of some kind of circle. It glowed green for a moment and then Loki handed it to her.
"It is set. I promise on my life."
"What's with the pendant? I've never seen something like that."
For a moment, he just stared at her.
"It is an aegishjalmur. It will protect you from...danger."
She looked at it closely and discovered that the silver thread was actually a tiny snake, beautifully made and with two minuscule rubies for eyes. Despite herself, her feelings and the situation, Darcy giggled. Maybe that was the power Loki had over her. Bring to light some dark humour in herself in most situations.
"Couldn't you get any more cliché? A snake?"
Loki smirked.
"Well, I have a reputation to maintain. Take care of Jane and my nephews."
And with that, he was gone.