VII

"Those statues are… quite unnerving, Sherlock," Loki commented as he studied the angel weeping before him. The old house he and Sherlock were investigating seemed to be as full of the grey statues as it was devoid of human life, all angels and all apparently in tears. Loki couldn't quite put his finger on why but something about the statues raised the hairs on the back of his neck. His instinct told him they were not normal statues.

"Just ignore them, Loki. We need to find this little girl." The pair had been called to find a young child who had mysteriously vanished from her local "haunted" house. There were no signs of a struggle or even of the girl's presence of all. There was absolutely no explanation of her disappearance whatsoever. So naturally, Sherlock Holmes leaped at the opportunity to take such an intriguing case. Since there was a child involved, he thought it only natural for Loki to tag along as well. "They are just statues."

"Are you so sure? Something feels very… unnatural…" Nevertheless, Loki followed his mortal beloved, still very uneasy. What could possibly drive a child into such a desolate house was beyond the god's comprehension. As battle hardened as the Nordic deity was, every fiber of his being was demanding him to leave the place. Children should thus be far too afraid to even look at the old house, let alone actually go inside. "Why would the little girl come inside this house anyway?"

"Dares, peer pressure, curiosity, the list is endless. Children aren't necessarily always the brightest. They make foolish decisions, Loki. Surely, a father would know that."

"Well yes, but children are also far more sensitive to energies than most, Sherlove. Any child in their right mind would be terrified of this house. And perhaps those statues."

"The great God of Mischief is really so unnerved by mere mortal statues?"

"Yes! Yes, I am. You should know that my admitting that means it must be serious, Sherlock." As adorable as Sherlock was, he could be incredibly thick at times.

"Loki…" Sherlock seemed a bit exasperated. "This isn't Asgard or any other magical realm. This is Earth, where a statue is just a statue. They don't move here, they are entirely made of stone." Sherlock turned to Loki, a serious glint in his eye. "Stones cannot move, Love. Earth is not as magical as you believe it can be…" The man seemed to actually feel guilty that statement was true. The Trickster was well aware Sherlock only believed Loki's magic was real was because he had seen it with his own eyes. But there was so much more sorcery – or other forces, as he felt applied to the statues – in this world if the detective would only believe.

"Not all things are as they appear, Sherlove. Even here on Earth."

"Perhaps… Perhaps not." With that, the consulting detective resumed his path, shining his torch here and there for any clues to the young girl's disappearance. Loki followed, a little downtrodden by his lover's lack of belief. He knew full well that Sherlock loved him despite not believing in half the things he said. The mortal had proven that time and again. Yet he didn't believe in what he could not see. Thus when he didn't believe some of the rare truths the God of Lies did tell, it cut Loki deep. With Sherlock, it was even deeper as Sherlock seemed to definitely believe Loki thought he was telling the truth.

"Here we are!" Sherlock's excited shout brought the god out of his depressing reverie. "This is where the girl went missing." Like the rest of the house, the bedroom in question was falling apart at the seams. The Victorian wallpaper was peeling off to reveal the web of cracks in the wood and concrete underneath, which was speckled with graffiti. An old chandelier rested on the floor, lopsided and surrounded by the crystal causalities of its descent. In the center against the wall sat a lonely four poster bed. On it, three dolls and a pink and blue giraffe waited patiently for their young mistress's return to them. In the corner sat another angel statue, this one peeping out from her fingertips.

"Who would keep a statue like this in the bedroom? I would find that quite a deterent…"

"Says the god who tied his… uh… 'package' to a goat's beard for party entertainment."

"One: I was referring to sleeping, Sherlock Holmes. Two: That is a myth!" Sherlock did not have to turn to look at his god to know his face was bright red. That had been his intended affect. Loki huffed in annoyance. "It is astounding what you humans will come up with a tiny grain of truth."

"In my defense, you won't outright tell me which myths are true or not. I have to guess which will embarrass you." The sleuth focused his torch's beam on the angel, studying it. "As for why anyone would have this in a child's bedroom… I'm not sure."

"No child would have such a thing in their bedroom. It would give them nightmares," Loki noted, keeping his distance from the staring statue. He had to resist the urge to yank his curious detective away from the offending thing. "Not unless they were… Oh what was their names… the Adamses?"

"Congratulations, Loki. Mary would be pro-"

"Quiet! ... Did you hear that?" Loki interrupted, hand flying to the dagger hidden on his belt. "There is someone else here…" Sure enough, a pair of voices could be heard not far down the hallway, causing the go to prickle like a tiger on the hunt. Sherlock always did enjoy watching his lithe lover in this fierce battle mode. It should have been terrifying but he found it quite sexy. "Stay here, love."

"Why wouldn't I? I enjoy watching you stalk prey." Of course, the only thing Sherlock was actually watching was Loki's delectable ass. He should, however, have been watching the statue which was now reaching for him….

Loki was very careful to keep silent as the voices grew closer to him. By now he could identify the owner's as a man and a woman, both distinctly British. And the woman sounded distinctly annoyed. "You promised me a planet, Spaceman, and what did you give me?"

"Well… It technically is a planet."

"I didn't mean my planet, you gas brain! I was expecting something a bit more exotic! And prettier!"

"Well, technically it isn't your planet. It's Earth in the year 2014."

"And just how do you know that?"

"Because Loki is sitting outside the door eavesdropping on us." So much for sneaking upon the intruders. A head of spikey brown hair popped out of the doorway, flashing the god a toothy grin. "Hello there, Loki! Why, you've grown up haven't you? Is your brother here?"

"Who the Hel are you?" Loki didn't understand how this complete stranger could act so familiar with him. They had never even met before now! Yet the trickster couldn't deny to himself there was something familiar about this stranger. By now his companion had joined them, the redhead seeming much more concerned about the dagger poised at the stranger's heart.

"Doctor! You idiot!"

"Doctor?" Now that sounded very familiar. However, the Doctor Loki knew had a very different face. "Doctor Who?"

"Oops! Right, sorry, Loki. New face." The man gave a few gentle slaps to his own cheeks to prove his point. "It's me! The Doctor! Remember? I helped you dye Thor and Odin's hair and capes pink when you were only up to my knee?" The god blinked in surprise, lowering his dagger.

"Doctor?" The Doctor nodded excitedly. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, Donna and I – Donna Noble, the loud spunky redhead behind me - "

"Oi!"

"We're investigating for a friend. Oh, and Donna Noble, Loki Odinson, God of Mischief." The Doctor gestured to the god, stepping aside so Donna could shake his hand. She simply stood, however, gawking at Loki in disbelief.

"Loki? As in the Loki? The nutter of the Norse Gods?" Loki frowned at her flattering epithet.

"Half of those myths are false, thank you very much."

"Even the one where you shagged a horse?" The god was about to bury his dagger in the insolent mortal's heart when the Doctor wormed the weapon from him. Thus, Loki utilized the daggers in his glare instead. Donna just stuck her tongue out at him.

"Anyway! Loki, what are doing here? Aren't you serving a sentence for attacking New York?"

"Attacking New York? What damage did this twig do? Knock over a leaf?"

"Watch it, mortal." Donna quieted but met Loki's glare with one of her own. "I am serving it here on Earth. I'm living with my lover, a detective. We were asked to help search for a missing little girl."

"What's the girl's name?"

"Emily Sparrow-Nightingale, I believe?"

"That's who we're looking for," Donna confirmed, looking surprised. "Her mother said she felt the police were incompetent for this case."

"Lestrade is incompetent. That's why he contacted-"

"Your girlfriend." Loki smirked at Donna.

"I believe you mortals would call him my boyfriend actually."

"Of course you're gay."

"Anyway. He's actually a very well-known detective. Sherlock Holmes. Though, I fear this case may be over his head."

"Well…" The Doctor interjected. "I would imagine so with the Angels."

"Angels?"

"This house is full of Weeping Angel statues."

"You mean the Angel statues?"

"Exactly!"

"Mmm they are very…. unnerving. Am I correct in assuming they are not what they seem?"

"Is anything with this bozo?" Donna asked, nodding towards the Doctor. Loki chuckled. He understood that this would be strange to the mortal whereas the god has probably seen much stranger.

"That is true I suppose. So if they are not mere statues, what exactly are they?"

"Well, technically they are statues. When you look at them. But when you look away, even for a second, they are fast, incredibly fast. If they touch you, they can send you back in time. You can live out the rest of your life but in the wrong period. The Angels feed off the potential energies left behind. All the days, maybes, and could have beens you would have had left…" By this time, Loki had gone very pale and wide eyed, causing the Doctor to drift off his explanation. "Loki? Is something wrong?"

"Sherlock…" With that, Loki turned on his heel and bolted back down the hall to where he had left Sherlock, praying the dread burrowing in the pit of his stomach was wrong. "Sherlock!" But when Loki arrived in the bedroom, there was no sign of his beloved detective anywhere. Just a stone angel pointing at him with a sadistic grin on her face….