Author's note: NOTE THE RATING CHANGE. Just so you don't get any nasty surprises if you missed it in the metadata box at the top. :)

Disclaimer: Loki is, sadly, not mine. This incarnation of him sort of is, but also owes a lot to interviews I've seen with Tom Hiddleston talking about his thoughts on the depth of the character.


Loki stalked back to the guesthouse in a fury. Had she been laughing at him all this time? Had they all been laughing at him? A small part of him was glad that he didn't meet anyone on the way, as he wasn't sure his self-control was up to dealing with incidental annoyances when he was so focussed on this one confrontation he needed to have.

No one in the common-room. Anger rising, he turned instead towards the room that they shared. Also empty, but there was light under the door to the tiny bathroom. Before he could move towards it, it opened and Grainne stepped out in a cloud of steam. She was rubbing at her hair with a towel, but otherwise was entirely – he'd even say spectacularly – naked. His breath caught, his anger deflected for a moment. The sound caught her attention and she looked up with a yelp of surprise.

"I thought you'd gone out," she said, wrapping the towel tightly around her as her face flamed scarlet.

"I came back."

"So I see." Her voice held that touch of wry humour that he had so enjoyed, and it made it hard to find the thread of his rage. As he struggled, she frowned. "What's wrong?" She took a step towards him, then froze as he met her gaze.

"I remember," he grated out. "I remember who I am." The air shimmered and rippled around him as he drew on the power that had been missing for so long. When it stilled, he was dressed in leather and armour and long green cloak, the golden horned helmet on his head. The familiar ensemble felt good and he drew himself to his full height. "I amLoki."

She nodded. "God of Magic and Mischief." He studied her through narrowed eyes. She was smiling, her own eyes shining.

Two swift strides brought him to her and he wrapped his hand firmly around her throat. "And youare not surprised, are you?"

His grip wasn't tight enough to choke. Not yet, anyway. He felt her swallow against his hand as she shook her head. "No," she whispered. "I'm just happy for you."

He shook her. "How long have you known?"

"Not known for sure." Her voice was roughened by the pressure against her throat, and he found it interesting that she didn't struggle against him. Her eyes were open and candid as she qualified, "But I suspected. Your picture... in the news... Your recent exploits in New York were quite the talking point. And Loki… The name is not unknown to me."

"And yet you never said anything."

Despite the hand around her throat, Grainne managed a smile and a raised eyebrow. "Would you have believed me?"

"That's…" He hesitated. Would he have believed her? It would have sounded so fantastic before the knowledge of who he truly was flooded back into his mind. And he had to admit, now that the first flush of anger was spent, that it was incredibly difficult to stay angry with her. He could feel her pulse beating rapidly against his fingers. He finished with "…a fair point." He let go and took a step back. "So knowing, or at least suspecting, who I was, you still welcomed me into your life and your journey and your... your family. Why? Because I was tamed?" He spat the last word bitterly as he paced to the door and back in a surfeit of restless energy.

She lowered the hand that had risen to massage her throat and shook her head. "Because I sensed that you weren't," she replied with a sad smile. "There was something about you. An... intensity, I guess. I'd never met anyone like you before. I figured even if you weren't a god, you were certainly exceptional." She shrugged. "I like exceptional."

He paused. Now this was more like it! The last of his anger fled as he stifled a smile and probed, "And yet no matter how exceptional, for all your kindness and affection you've always kept a certain... distance." He glanced meaningfully at the room's two beds.

Grainne blushed and dropped her gaze, shifting uncomfortably. "It didn't seem right. It would have felt like I was taking advantage of you while you didn't know yourself."

Loki grinned. In less time than it took to draw a breath he had shifted himself to stand just behind her, making her jump. He brushed the damp hair away from her throat and let his fingers drift softly down her neck and shoulder, feeling her shiver. "And now?" he purred, bending to speak directly into her ear.

"You'd lower yourself so far as to consort with a mere mortal?" Her voice was light, but he could hear the thread of uncertainty under it.

It was a good question, he supposed, but this was one he knew the answer to. He wanted her so fiercely he burned with it. He ran both hands down her shoulders, exulting in the way she quivered beneath his touch. "When the mortal is you, yes. Do you want me?"

"Yes." She half-turned in his embrace and the look in her eyes took his breath away. His remaining self-control snapped and he turned her roughly towards him as his mouth descended on hers. She met him eagerly, her arms lifting to twine around his neck, her tongue darting out to duel with his as he plundered her mouth mercilessly. The cheek-guards of his helmet were in the way, preventing him from getting as close to her as he wanted to. He reached up blindly and tore it from his head, dropping it to the floor and being rewarded with the feel of her fingers tangling in his hair. There was nothing in his experience to compare to this. Absolutely nothing!

When they finally pulled apart, both slightly dazed, Grainne ran her hand down his chest and shot him a wicked smile. "I love the new look, Loki. It's madly sexy. But right now it's also very much in the way."

He threw back his head with a bark of laughter. Would she ever cease surprising him? He hoped not. With an answering grin, he drew his magic around him once more. When the shimmer cleared, he stood before her completely naked. "Is this more to your liking?"

Her eyes raked him from head to toe and back, radiating approval. "Oh, very much so," she breathed.

"Good." His hand closed on the towel and tore it away. Now that he was in a better frame of mind, well... it was still a wonderful view. He allowed himself a few moments to admire it.

She laughed and struck an ostentatious pose. "And?" she asked, green eyes shining with amusement.

"And I do hope you didn't have plans for this afternoon, because I don't intend to let you leave for some time." He grabbed her around the waist and threw them both sideways onto the nearest of the beds, where they landed in a breathless tangle of limbs. She wriggled against him, which nearly sent him through the roof, so he rolled to pin her beneath him. Not that this turned out to be any less arousing, he discovered. "You. Are. Mine" He punctuated each word with a fierce kiss.

"All yours." She barely breathed the words before drawing his head down for another lingering kiss. Then she hooked one leg behind his and gave him a smile that was equal parts joy and smouldering sensuality. "And you're mine."

"Yes." There was a small part of his mind that was surprised he didn't take exception to this - a mortal thinking to lay claim to him! Yet somehow, this was different. Different, and extremely welcome. It wasn't about ownership or power, it was about acceptance and love. Yes, he was sure of it now. He loved this delicate, caring, whimsical young woman with a passion that was going to set him on fire if he didn't do something about it soon.

Since he couldn't think of a single reason not to, he did. Her soft moan of pleasure was muffled by a deep kiss as he buried himself inside her. He forced his body to stillness, wanting to savour the sensation for a few moments, until she shifted under him. Her eyes were dilated and her face flushed, but her voice held a hint of laughter as she informed him, "If you don't start moving, I'm going to bite you."

"That sounds promising," he replied with a devilish smile, making her laugh. Now that was an interesting sensation! He hissed in surprise and closed his eyes briefly, before deciding that he didn't want to wait any longer, even for the sake of teasing her. Teasing them both, he amended wryly. He began to move above her, slowly at first but gaining speed as pure primal need took over. Her nails dug into his shoulders, fingers flexing convulsively. His lips locked with hers as he felt her shudder and ripple beneath him and he followed her over the edge into magnificent release.


Author's Note 2: So, this is sort of a request. I have some vague ideas for a sequel to this story, which will involve the rest of the Avengers. I have some strong ideas for certain scenes, but I'm having a really hard time coming up with a suitably comicbook-epic threat to bring them together. It's why I generally write people stories, not action. And so, my request:

Give me suggestions for a big bad and the sort of havoc he/she/it/they might wreak on the world. Probably something magical or mystical in nature would work best, since I want the Avengers to need Loki's help, and that's the one area where they don't really have much in the way of knowledge or experience. You can either leave them in the reviews, or send me a PM.

If I use your suggestion, you get to name something in the new story when I write it. :D (In addition to, presumably, naming the big bad, that is.)