Chapter Four

Insolence

Mine.

It was a deceptively simple word, yet a multitude of connotations lurked beneath the four tiny letters, the one sharp syllable. It was certainly not the first time Alex had heard the word spill from the lips of a man, and she suspected it would not be the last. In the innocence of youth she had entertained the notion that it was an endearing word, yet her short adulthood had taught her otherwise. It was a word of power, of subjugation. Once the word was uttered, it did not matter how much Alex worked, how much she strived for independence, she was owned.

She hated it.

It was for this reason alone that she slipped from beneath the armoured prince, falling in an ungainly heap on the mat beside her bed. Her fingers reached out for the lump of silk that once constituted her fine Asgardian gown, and she draped the material over her naked form.

It took a while for Loki to realise that his pillow had disappeared. He turned his head to glance upon her, eyes hidden by rogue locks of raven hair that he idly slipped behind his ear. "What is the meaning of this?"

"I am not yours."

The words were feeble, yet the intention was not.

Loki simply replied with a lopsided smile and a derisive snort.

"Your actions weave an entirely different spell."

Alex rolled her eyes at his cryptic response. Like everything that Loki said, she suspected his words held many meanings, but at this moment she did not particularly care. She wanted him gone, not just from her rooms, but from her life. She knew this to be admitting defeat. Were she to ask for a reassignment, she would be submitting to Loki's dominance and thus proving the fact she was his. His little nightly dalliance. His whore. Even thinking about it sickened her.

Loki made no move to leave her bed. "You are a curious mortal. Others of your kind would beg to be in your place. To bed a god."

"You are not a god," she stammered. "You're just a weird, super strong alien with nice cheek bones. Now get out."

The dark slash of his eyebrow rose. "Now we both know you do not wish for that. There are still many hours before dawn."

Alex scowled. Damned Asgard and its peculiar solar cycle. Her eyes turned to the tiny Midgardian alarm clock she kept on the dresser. It, like all the other electrical appliances she had brought to Asgard, was powered by a small generator: a present from Tony Stark. At this moment, the tiny red fingers of light read: 4.08am.

It would be three hours before the Asgardian sun chose to venture over the horizon. Three hours before Loki would be forced, through necessity, to leave. Removing herself from the floor, she sat at her desk chair, eyes not leaving the figure on her bed. Even covered with leather and metal, Loki lying upon her bed was still one of the most sensuous things Alex had ever witnessed. The realisation of this fact only encouraged her to further her resolve.

It was the alcohol. She had drunk too much the night before. He had caught her by surprise. It would not happen again.

Yet as his emerald eyes locked onto her grey, she realised swiftly that her excuses meant nothing. The armoured god lifted himself gracefully from the mattress, fingers idly tying up his pants as he did so. Apart from the slightly ruffled hair, he was immaculate.

Two short strides were all it took for him to stand before her. "I have no patience for this," he growled, gripping her menial covering and ripping it from her body. "You, mortal, forget your place."

"And you forget y-"

While her words sounded strong in her head, they sounded ridiculous muffled by his lips. His fingers dug into her forearms, dragging her back to the bed. He released her lips only momentarily, as she was thrown unceremoniously upon the mattress. One of his hands drew forth to clasp two of hers above her head. The other slipped between her legs, long fingers dipping deep within her.

She whimpered, trying to struggle against him, but his caresses intensified.

"You claim you do not want it, but your body evidently disagrees," he hissed, removing his fingers. Slowly, he licked one slick finger, before forcing both between her closed lips. "You have forced this upon yourself, my little harlot. Had you not struck me in the courtyard I would have left you be, but now..." his smile turned cruel. "Now I intend to take you in every conceivable way. I will take my time, coming to you every single night, dragging it on until the only thought in that pretty little head of yours is me. Only then will I go. Do you understand?"

She nodded, eyes wide. Loki removed his fingers.

"Good girl. Now, you are going to follow all of my instructions. If you fail to, you will be punished."

His cock now free from its prison of leather and metal, Loki use both hands to flip her, pushing her face down into the bed. Alex blinked, the tears welling unknown within her eyes now soaking into the coverlet. It was then Loki issued his first instruction: "Take the headboard."

Despite the niggling voice of defiance still present in her pretty little head, Alex obeyed. The wood was cold against her fingers, slightly scratched from Loki's own fingernails. She blushed.

"Make no noise," came his next instruction, his hands gripping her hips. Alex bit her lip as he brushed his length over her clitoris before positioning himself at her entrance. His first thrust was slow, torturous, but this lasted a mere moment. Despite his clear instructions regarding her behaviour, Loki had little intention of obeying them himself, his obscene moans filling the room. The sound was so intoxicating she almost moaned herself, only to remember his words. She did not want to experience Loki's definition of punishment.

As his thrusts hardened, the headboard rattled beneath her fingers. Rhythmic, loud, almost as if someone were knocking...

"LADY ALEX! YOU MUST WAKE!"

...at the door. Loki's thrusts stopped as he recoiled, his brother's voice the very last thing he expected to hear during his nightly escapades. Alex felt the colour fade from her cheeks, and scolded herself for blaming the headboard for the knocking noises. Was she really that much of an idiot?

"Get out of here!" she hissed in Loki's direction. Though she disobeyed him, the God of Mischief did as she suggested, slipping behind a panel obscured by a large tapestry. She idly made a note to put her desk in front of that tapestry. Grabbing the dishevelled dress, she tried her best to look tired, opening the door.

"Thor, what is it?"

"Lady Alex. You look terrible." Thor's periwinkle eyes glinted with concern.

Alex allowed a small smirk to curl her lips. "You sure know the way to a girl's heart, Thor." She opened the door further, allowing him in. The bed looked ruffled, but no more than it should after a rough sleep. The open windows had long since swept the scent of sex from the room.

"I am sorry, Lady Alex. I did not wish to wake you, but your presence is required on Midgard immediately."

Alex groaned. "Really?"

"Indeed."

"I mean, this isn't just Tony's idea of a joke?"

"Why would Stark find this humorous?"

Alex shrugged. "Because he's odd, rich and potentially unstable."

"You are correct," Thor conceded. "But this is no joke concocted by the man of Iron. I will allow you to pack and dress, but we must depart before the sixth hour." With a small nod, the God of Thunder left, leaving Alex rather shocked.

Well that was helpful.

While Loki was a veritable library of unwanted details, Thor could not even inform her whether or not she would be on Midgard for a prolonged period of time. With a sigh, she grabbed her rucksack, throwing her laptop, a few books and a bundle of spare clothes into its depths. She would leave the rest: if she never returned to Asgard, they could send it all back with Thor. It was only as she slipped toward the bathroom that she noticed the tapestry move.

"This is a most unfortunate turn of events."

Loki allowed the tapestry to fall over the still open panel, following her into the bathroom. Despite his presence, she started the water running into the bath, placing her folded S.H.I.E.L.D uniform upon the vanity. Long fingers brushed her hair aside, his lips pressing a light kiss to the back of her neck. "How am I supposed to entertain myself now?"

"You have a perfectly serviceable hand," Alex replied, "and I'm sure there are plenty of books in the library containing sketches of buxom Asgardian wenches."

"Oh, I do not need to go to the library for those." She could feel his smirk against her neck. For some reason the idea of Loki having a collection of antiquated pornography made her alternate between arousal and amusement. With a twist of her wrists, she turned the water off. The bathroom was now rich with the scent of jasmine and vanilla, which easily overpowered that of sex and leather.

Slipping her ruined garment from her shoulders, she stepped into the large tub, turning back to meet his eyes.

"I would ask you to join me, but then that would require you to remove your armour. We couldn't have that."

Loki ignored her sarcasm, grabbing her face between his hands and kissing her. It was light, despite the ferocity of his embrace, his tongue barely brushing hers before he pulled away. "Until your return," he whispered. "Expect punishment for your insolence."