Chapter Two: Private Talk

Fury HAD gotten away in enough time to not be crushed, but both Anna and Barton had been able to keep anyone that he sent after them off their tail with their guns, and Loki blasted Fury out of the helicopter he had tried to chase them in with his scepter. She had the guess that it was powered in some way by the cube, but didn't say anything during the ride toward wherever the hell they were going. Loki gave Dr. Selvig brief directions as the older man drove, but Anna wasn't too familiar with the area, so she paid them little mind. She kept to herself during the drive, staying quiet again, but she could feel Loki's eyes on her throughout most of the car ride. As he likely didn't expect someone to both give themselves over so quickly OR still go when his magic couldn't turn them, she assumed that he at least wondered what her agenda was.

Truth was she had very little agenda. That was likely what made her dangerous to deal with. She had no real want for power or riches in this life. She was just...a lot more chaotic than she had let on. She hid her true nature as much as she could from her now former employers. She had worked for them for a while simply because it had been something to pass her endless amounts of time. It let her attack others without being chased too badly for it. Oh there was always someone chasing her, as S.H.I.E.L.D. had plenty of enemies, but the agency had kept her cloaked fairly well enough. It had served its purpose, though, so now it was time to toss off the identity of an agent like a cloak.

When they arrived to the HQ that Loki seemed to have previously set up somehow (once again, Anna didn't ask questions), they were shown inside. It seemed that equipment was already set up for Dr. Selvig to being working with the Tesseract again, which the man seemed positively gleeful to have. As Barton wandered off to check the grounds for possible security breaches, Anna moved to follow him, more out of habit than anything, but she felt Loki's hand touch her shoulder to stop her before she could.

His touch was cool, and, since Anna was naturally a hot blooded creature, the difference was all the more distinct. The doctors at S.H.I.E.L.D. had almost rejected her for service, as her temperature had always run around 101F, higher than the human average. They had thought her sick in some way. However, she had proven that, besides that anomaly, she was healthy.

The Asgardian's grip was light but firm. "Let's talk in private," he said. Even though his tone sounded light, she could sense the undercurrent in his voice said that he would take no argument. With a nod, she turned around, following Loki toward another door, leaving off to what looked to be a sitting room. She shut the door behind them for a modicum of privacy.

She turned around to face him, her own blue eyes not wavering from his green ones. "What are you?" he asked, looking her over. "I thought that only humans worked for that agency, although I can't figure out just why you would have joined with them."

"I did it to pass the time," she admitted with a shrug. "And no, I'm not human," she told him, giving him a slightly feral grin. "Whatever made me didn't exactly stick around long enough to explain anything else." Her first memory was waking up alone, fully formed, and adult. "I've been alive on this dirtball of a planet long enough to watch these primitive apes grow up to the point that they think they're the most important thing in the universe. Gets old after a while."

That elicited a chuckle out of him. "Sounds like you're old. Old as me, even."

She nodded. "Old but stuck here, unlike you." She started to pace the room. This was likely the most that she had talked to anyone in a long while, but she couldn't even remember the last time she had WANTED to talk to someone. Dealing with anyone that even sparked her curiosity made her nervous. It had been easier to run into 'interesting' people in times past, but they had pulled away from this world as humanity had become more secular. After a while it felt like she was alone here with humans. She didn't know what she was, but she had always felt like she didn't belong here.

"What is it that you want, then? Off of this planet? Off to a better world?" he asked, studying her again. She supposed that he was still trying to figure out what she was. If he had any real ideas, she'd be glad to hear them. She wondered what sort of lore that he knew or had access to. Even the oldest libraries that she had been able to get into couldn't tell her anything about what she was. It was part of the reason why she hated this place so much. It had never been of any help to her.

"I'd just be happy to watch this one burn," she admitted to him. "But whatever you have in mind I'm sure will be just as fun," she continued in what, to others who had 'known' her, was an uncharacteristically light tone. What others didn't know was that she could actually be a happy little thing. She just had hated her current situation so much that she saw no point to show it to others. That had changed, obviously.

"I take it your real name's not "Anna' then," he said.

She laughed. "I didn't say my name. Guess that makes you a mind reader, among other things," she replied. "It's a name as good as any. Whatever made me didn't exactly leave me a nametag." She had dealt with a few mind readers in the past. One had been sure that she was insane because her thought pattern was erratic. She supposed she might be by human standards. Just meant that they couldn't keep up with her.

When she stopped pacing, he walked closer to her, looking down on her as he slowly circled her. "Can you die, not-Anna?" he asked.

"Technically yes, but then there's just fire and I'm reborn, so it's really not worth the effort," she told him with a casual shrug. It had happened a few times during her life, but she found it more annoying than anything did. Only cutting off her head seemed to trigger it, and then she caught aflame and regenerated a new body. It annoyed her because that tended to burn off her clothing. She'd lost plenty of nice things to that trick.

"Like the Phoenix of Greek tradition?" he asked. It was interesting to watch someone stare as she usually stared at others. She didn't find it nearly as unnerving as humans did, though. Then again, she felt like she had nothing to hide from him. When she nodded, he smiled again. "I think 'Phoenix' is a more fitting name for a ruler than 'Anna,' don't you?"

That caught her by surprise. Then again, she supposed that she was too strong of an ally to turn away, so why not a 'political' joining? "Second in command or equal in rule?" she asked. Might as well know where she stood.

"Second in command," he said bluntly.

"OK!" she said cheerfully. She bent down on one knee again, showing her supplication to him. "Then what's the plan, my king?"