Un-beta'd. Thanks for the response on this story, guys. Your reviews and kudos mean a lot to me.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"What have we here?" asked the man in a familiar voice.

Tony took a quick step back, which sent a thrill of fear through Darcy.

"Uh, nothing," said Tony, and he took another step back, bumping into Darcy whose back was against the wall.

"Nothing?" asked the man, and he tossed aside the cup, sending it and the crystal clattering to the ground. "Nothing? Nothing?"

The man removed his disguise in a quick swoop and revealed himself to be the king. Darcy couldn't help but to notice that he had changed his clothing and decided right then and there that, thieving king or not, the man before her looked hot and dangerous in everything he wore. He looked like a deep pool of quiet rage bubbled beneath his calm surface.

"Your majesty," said Tony, kneeling, "What a nice surprise!"

Darcy, who knelt for no one, remained standing. Although while in the minor act of what she thought was defiance, she was still grateful that the king's severe face was not looking upon her.

"Hello, Tiny," said the king.

"Tommy," Darcy corrected.

"Tony," said Tony, an edge to his voice as he stood and shot Darcy an irritated look.

The king did not acknowledge the exchange. He narrowed his eyes at Tony. "Tony, are you helping this girl?"

"H- helping?" repeated Tony, whose nervous hand was scratching the back of his head, "In what sense?"

The king crossed his arms and a cold smile played across his lips. "In the sense that you're leading her towards the castle."

Tony glanced back at Darcy. The king still trained his gaze only on Tony.

"I was taking her back to the beginning," said Tony.

"What?" demanded Darcy. It was then that Darcy felt the king's eyes upon her face, but all she could focus on was the sound of the blood rushing in her ears from her rage and Tony shrinking back away from her. Tony turned back to the king.

"I told her I would help her," he said, and the king turned his focus back to Tony one more, "A little trickery on my part-"

The king cocked his head to the side and in one fluid motion reached his hand inside of Tony's vest and pulled out the iPhone. He inspected it for a moment and looked back up at Tony, an incredulous look on his face.

"What is this glass thing?"

"Um," said Tony as he looked at the little phone and back at Darcy, "Um, oh, um, Oh this! Where did this come from?"

"Goonie," the king started.

"Tony," Tony corrected.

"Yes," The king narrowed his eyes once more. "If I thought for one second that you were betraying me, I would be forced to suspend you headfirst in the Fen of Questionable Content."

Tony's eyes grew wide in terror as he sank to his knees. "No! No your majesty, not the Fen!"

"Oh yes," spat the king, and in one graceful movement he turned from Tony to Darcy, closing the distance between them. Darcy took an automatic step backward and hit the cold stone wall once more. She felt his eyes boring into her own as a conflicted thrill of fear and lust ran through her.

"And you, girl," said the king, and he rested his arm against the wall near one side of her head.

But Darcy cut him off before he continued.

"I'm getting pretty tired of you calling me a girl, your majesty. I am a fully grown woman."

The king let her words sink in for a scant moment before he looked her up and down approvingly and leaned in.

"Why so you are," he whispered in her ear. Darcy shivered and her eyes flashed. That was not the reaction she was supposed to feel. This guy was a thieving, mind-fuck psycho. Focus, Darcy, focus.

The king took a step backward, giving her slightly more space to breathe. "How are you enjoying my labyrinth?

It flew out of her mouth before she even really thought about the consequences. "It's a piece of cake."

Tony scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Oh no…"

Now the king's eyes flashed. "Really?" he asked, his voice dangerously low, "Then how about upping the stakes?"

He turned to a clock that appeared behind him and moved time ahead by several hours. Darcy's mouth dropped open.

"That's not fair!"

The king turned back to her, a wicked grin hiding that silver tongue of his.

"You say that so often," he sneered and contorted his face into mock sympathy, which just as suddenly turned back into focused arrogance. "I wonder what your basis for comparison is."

He stalked past her and pulled one of his small crystal spheres from the no-space, holding it in his hand and rolling it hypnotically from side to side.

"So the Labyrinth's a piece of cake?" he asked, glancing at Darcy, "Let's see you deal with this little slice."

The king turned away from her and threw the glass sphere hard into the darkness. The sphere caught the light and started shifting, changing, until little by little Darcy and Tony realized that a massive, fiery machine was coming at them. The king was gone, a metal gate appeared over the doorway from whence they came, and Tony and Darcy only had one direction to go.

"Run!" shouted Tony. They ran down the cold stone tunnel, taking care not to trip over random bits of debris on the ground, and Darcy only looked back once - after that she had had enough of the sight of whatever the hell was coming toward them.

"What is that thing?" Darcy shouted, and she and Tony continued sprinting as fast as their legs would carry them.

"It's a molten machine that spews fire!" shouted a very angry Tony, who was gasping for breath, "It's called 'The Cleaners'."

"Hurry!"

"The Cleaners, the Fen of Questionable Content - you sure got his attention!" Tony spat back.

"Come on!"

The continued running until they both realized that up ahead was a locked gate. Darcy panicked, watching the fiery machine come closer and closer to them. She pounded her fists against the wall and the wall- surprisingly- wasn't as solid as she thought it was.

"Help me!" Darcy shouted, and Tony started pounding his fists on the wall too.

"No, not that, your glove-blaster-thingy!" Darcy yelled in furious frustration. Tony didn't have time to be embarrassed; he activated both gloves and shot at the wall, bringing the entire thing down and revealing a crawlspace behind it. Both Darcy and Tony jumped into the crawlspace just in time to watch The Cleaners roll by, all fiery magma and hellish heat. Two golden Asgardian warriors pushed it from behind and Darcy had a mind to kick one square in the ass from her rage and adrenaline, but she was too relieved to be out of the line of fire (ha!) to care.

They both took a moment to look around at what fresh hell they'd gotten themselves into when they both realized that they had stumbled upon a way out of the cold stone tunnel.

"Ah, a ladder," Tony said, "Follow me."

Darcy crossed her arms. "How can I trust you now that I know that you were taking me back to the beginning of the labyrinth?"

"I wasn't. I told him that to throw him off the scent," said Tony, and he began climbing the ladder.

"Tony, how can I believe anything you say?"

"Let me put it this way," said Tony, and he continued climbing the ladder, "What choice have you got?"

Darcy let out a sigh and shrugged her shoulders. "You're right." She began to follow him up the ladder.

"See, you've got to understand my position, princess. I'm a coward, and Loki scares me."

"What kind of position is that?" she asked as they reached the middle of the ladder that went up, up, up.

"No position," said Tony, "That's my point. You wouldn't be so brave if you'd ever smelt the Fen of Questionable Content. It's- it's just- ugh."

"Is that all it does?" asked Darcy, "It just smells?"

"Believe me, that's enough," he said as they reached near the top of the ladder, "But the worst thing is, if you so much as dip a toe in the Fen of Questionable Content, you'll smell bad for the rest of your life. It'll never wash off."

They reached the top of the ladder and Tony pushed they heavy cement lid of the hole down to the ground. Darcy saw Tony disappear from sight as he jumped down off of whatever it was that contained the ladder. When Darcy made it to the top of the ladder herself, she realized that the ladder let them out of a large golden pot that was used as decoration for a beautiful garden. She jumped down off the golden piece of art with no help from Tony and landed on well-kept stone that swirled a path through the labyrinth. The shining golden castle could be seen, much closer now, in the distance.

"Here we are, then," said Tony, "You're on your own from now on."

"What?" demanded Darcy.

"That's it, cupcake, I quit," said Tony. He did his best not to meet her eyes.

"Wait a minute," said Darcy, "Tony!"

"I said I'd take you as far as I could."

"You little cheat! You nasty little cheat!"

Tony grinned and looked away, "Now don't go trying to embarrass me; I have no pride."

Darcy was disgusted and looked at him up and down, spying a chink in his armor. While Tony was looking away, Darcy grabbed hold of one of his brown gloves and yanked, tearing it off of him.

"Oh yeah?" she taunted him, dangling the glove in his face and snatching it back, away from him, when he tried to grab for it.

"But that's my glove," said Tony, anxiousness dominating his voice, "Give them back!"

Darcy continued to taunt him, dodging him when he lunged for the glove and slipping it onto her own hand. Tony saw that she was now wearing his glove and his eyes widened, putting his hands into the air.

"Be careful," he warned, "Darcy, give it back. You have no idea-"

"I know exactly what I'm doing, Mr. Inventor. Now, there's the castle. Which way should we try?" she asked, pointing with either hand at the two exits of the little nook where the ladder led them.

"Darcy, that glove is mine. It is dangerous, and you have no idea how to use it properly. You need to give it back; this isn't fair."

Darcy stopped her gleeful taunting for a moment while she had an epiphany. "No, it isn't fair," she said slowly, tasting the words in her mouth and becoming used to them, "But that's the way it is."

Both of their attention was grabbed by the sound of someone walking near them and they both became quiet. Whatever the thing was, it was huge. Both Tony and Darcy slowly turned as to not attract its attention, but calmed when they saw that the huge man with dark skin, golden armor, and enchanting yellow eyes sat on a large stone seat. He let go of the massive golden sword he carried, which stayed perfectly balanced and in place, standing upright on its own, next to him. The man looked at Darcy.

No, not looked. He man saw Darcy. Darcy felt as though every secret she'd ever had was suddenly bared for this man to see, but his kind eyes assuaged her and she felt no fear. Darcy took in a deep breath and approached the man, holding his gaze.

"Excuse me, please, but can you help me?" Darcy asked.

The man continued to hold her gaze unblinkingly.

"Ah, Lady Darcy," the man said in a baritone voice, "I've been expecting you."

Darcy was taken aback and blinked a couple of times before finding her voice again. "And you are…?"

"Heimdall."

"Heimdall, it's nice to meet you. This is my friend, Tony. You were expecting me?"

"Indeed. King Loki has set his sights on you, and therefore I have set my sights on you. I am honored to assist you in any way I can," said Heimdall. Tony glanced back and forth between Heimdall and Darcy, and Darcy was assessing whether this new person was truly friend or foe.

"Apparently his majesty threatens to throw people into a swamp-"

"Fen of Questionable Content," Tony interrupted.

"A swamp if people help me on my little journey. I'll ask for your help only if you want to give it to me."

Heimdall's gaze never wavered. "I have defeated stronger men than Loki. I worry not about him, Lady Darcy, but you… should not be here. You are innocent."

Darcy didn't allow herself the luxury of time to dissect that statement. "I have to get to the castle at the center of the labyrinth. It's really, really important. Do you know the way?"

"Ah," said Heimdall.

"Ah," repeated Tony.

Darcy shot him a warning look and waited patiently for Heimdall's answer.

"Sometimes, the way forward is the way back," Heimdall said simply.

"Eh, listen to this guy, he has no idea what he's talking about," said Tony. He folded his arms and rolled his eyes so hard that Darcy was sure that he must have pulled a muscle.

"Will you please be quiet?" Darcy asked.

"All right."

"Ok?"

"Ok."

"All right," repeated Darcy.

"All right, sorry."

"Are you finished?" she asked.

"Yes."

Heimdall waited in silence before continuing. "Quite often, Lady Darcy, it seems like we are not getting anywhere, when in fact-"

"-we are," said Tony.

"We are," repeated Heimdall.

Darcy sighed and rubbed one eye in frustration. "I'm really not getting anywhere at the moment."

"I'm afraid that is all I am able to dispense to you. There are rules. I wish you luck on your journey," said Heimdall.

"Thanks," Darcy said, and she and Tony turned and left, Darcy slipped Tony's power glove onto her hand for safekeeping.

"That was a load of crap. That guy didn't tell you anything," Tony said.

Darcy said nothing as she carved a path through the labyrinth with Tony trailing behind her. They had walked for almost a solid half-hour when Tony finally spoke up.

"Why did you say that? About my being your friend?" Tony asked.

Darcy didn't slow and called behind her, "Because you are. You're not much of a friend, but you're the only friend I've got in this place."

Tony was silent for a heartbeat. "What about Loki?"

"Loki?" Darcy asked, as she whirled around to face Tony, "You think Loki is my friend? What kind of friend steals your stuff and makes you go through a freakin' Tri-Wizard Tournament task to get it back? Stuff that's not even your stuff?"

Tony cocked a single eyebrow at her. "You say as you walk around with my glove on your hand."

Darcy's face went blank for only a moment before she burst into peals of laughter.

"You win," she giggled, "You win."

She slipped the glove off of her hand and handed it back to him. He placed it back on his own hand and slipped into a satisfied smirk.

"Do you hear something?" Darcy asked.

"No," said Tony.

Darcy squinted her eyes as though that would help her to hear better.

"Friend, huh?" said Tony, almost as if to himself, "I like that. I've never had a friend before."

"Seriously?" asked Darcy absentmindedly. She was still trying to focus on the pitter-patter of little feet she thought she was hearing. She shook her head and tried to focus. "Like, even in school?"

"School?" Tony asked, and the quizzical expression on his face said it all.

"Of course this place doesn't have school. Curiouser and curiouser."

A deafening roar of rage filled the air and both Darcy and Tony jumped.

"Goodbye!" said Tony, and he turned around and started to head straight in the opposite direction of the noise. Darcy ran after him for a few steps and grabbed onto his vest.

"Wait a minute! Are you my friend or not?"

"No, Darcy. I am no one's friend. I look after me, like everyone else. Tony is Tony's friend," he said, and he wrenched himself away from her grasp and continued running.

"Tony!" Darcy called after him, "You coward!"

Another loud roar pierced the air and Darcy winced at the sound of it. But despite everything her body told her to do, she turned toward it and steeled herself before walking forward, toward the horrible noise.

"I'm not afraid," she said to herself, "Things aren't always what they seem in this place."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Loki set the crystal down next to him on the bed.

You think Loki is my friend?

The king scoffed. Of course he wasn't her friend. He didn't want to be just her friend. He let his mind wander and his eyes found their way, as they always did, back to the crystal to find her once more.

This was starting to fall apart. She would not have it, would not have him like this. She was repulsed by him.

Loki ran a hand through his hair and he glanced at the clock in the corner of the room. 5 hours and change until the big finish. He took a deep breath and thought.

He needed to change the game. He needed to get into her good graces. But he couldn't break the rules- it wasn't an option.

He needed to woo her.

"Fandral!" Loki called as he arose from the bed, his day clothing changing to his black riding clothing in an instant. He heard Fandral enter the room.

"My king?"

"Bring me some fruit and ready Sleipnir. I am going out."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Thanks for reading! Please favorite, follow, and review if you are so inclined.

I am also on Tumblr and I post updates on all my fanfiction. My username is JessiokaFroka.