Tony and Thor distracted the guards that kept a watchful eye on Natasha long enough to slip Loki into their midst, the god's magic solid as he slithered his way past the two men who were sizing up Thor and Tony, as though anticipating that they'd be the ones to pose the problems. As if. Tony ran his mouth off, trying to bet the largest man there that Thor could kick his ass six ways from Sunday in an arm wrestling match, saying that he was sure no one was a match for the Great God Thor, and while the agent might not have been believing it, his friend certainly was egging him on a great deal. Loki had noticed the crazed look in his eye, and though he'd longed to call out to Thor, to warn him, he didn't think his adopted brother would have any issue dealing with him. Being too close to Natalia must've been affecting them more than they'd anticipated. It was a wonder what she would do if they stayed any longer.
The glass cage that she'd been enclosed in allowed her to see anything and everything that walked towards her, and allowed her no privacy either as a result. That was a smart move, Loki had to admit, feeling her attention falling on him as he stepped closer, his body dressed in the suit of a SHIELD agent, footsteps measured and slow as he came to stand opposite her.
"You know, these little talks that your Director thinks I need to have really are becoming the highlight of my day," she mused, her back to him and her tone lilting, carefree. He'd only heard Natasha like that once, in her fonder memories of her and her team actually spending time together. She'd had a decent connection with the others, had garnered strong enough bonds that their attachment to her was warranted, and though they'd put her in the cage he could see that Clint, at the very least, had left her a few things. A handful of books scattered the floor, some of them he'd seen before from the snippets of her past he'd gotten, the vision of them belonging on her bookshelves back in their home coming back to him.
"I'm glad you're enjoying them at the least." He said, his voice a different lilt. Southern, he thought. "Goodness knows you're giving all of us a ride of a life."
She laughed at that, and while he wanted to enjoy the sound of it it sent chills up his spine.
"That's what I'm here to do," she said, turning around to stare at him, and stopped. Her smile, if anything, grew wider, cracking the corners of her cheeks so that his own ached at the sight.
"Clever, clever, clever little Loki. That's who you are, isn't it?" She breathed deep, closing her eyes in mock adoration of whatever it was she could smell. His magic, he guessed. "I wasn't sure what to think when I felt you come in but now? Now this is fun." She stood from where she'd been sitting with her back to him, moving to stand opposite him, her stance mirroring his as her head tipped to the side with a strange, inhuman like grace, as though the bones in her body suddenly no longer obeyed the rules of earth. He'd seen less grace in the movements of a serpent, ashamed to admit that even his skin broke out into goosebumps. He took a deep breath, the glamor he'd used to get through their barricaded guards falling off his body like a gossamer sheet.
"Why bother asking questions you know the answers to?" He asked, allowing himself a confident smile as he folded his hands behind his back. "Natalia. You are so very clever yourself to turn them on me like that, to play on Barton and Natasha's connection."
She rolled her eyes. "I knew he wouldn't kill you. Couldn't kill you. Wonder if I could. Stick my damn hand right inside your chest and squeeze," she gave a girlish laugh. He gritted his teeth. "But I think I might miss you. Haven't had this much fun in centuries." One of her hands pressed forward, and for half a terrifying second he expected her palm to press right through the glass. She pouted, as though thinking it would, too. "What else can I get into while you're here? What other chaos can I create?"
"You've already started. You're playing havoc with her life-isn't that enough for you?" He asked, already knowing the answer. She knew it, too, and snorted.
"Show me how crafty you are, Loki. If you bore me I'll shout until Clint comes running to get me. To save me," she drawled the word. "You know it's almost pathetic how badly he wants to believe that I'm her, Natasha. That he somehow managed to get the big bad sorcerer's spell broken and I'll come back to my senses. Well, she'll come back to her senses." He watched her face contort with a derisive laugh, watched the way that her eyes glinted in a way that wasn't Natasha at all, that could only be something far darker, far older, than he might even have known about. He catalogued that, needing at least something to figure out.
"The last body I'd inhabited wasn't nearly as much fun as this one. He didn't have near as many people that cared about him as she does. Funny, how little she realizes her own worth when these men would go so far to try and get her back."
"What was the last person like?" Loki asked, curious. "I'm assuming the amnesia is what first gets you into their heads."
"Yes, yes," she waved her hand, stepping away from the wall with a roll of her eyes. "You knew that, though. Knew that the moment I started to resurface when her memories did."
"So you're the young gentleman she keeps dreaming about."
Natalia gave another roll of her eyes, and it was a wonder, Loki thought, they didn't fall from her skull.
"Don't play stupid with me, Loki. You're too smart for that."
"On the contrary, you fascinate me. They think I'm here to get her back but really?" He copped a grin, his voice filled with conspiracy that made even her lean forward in curiosity. "I want to know more about you. Your offer. It's been playing on my mind."
"Has it?" She sounded like she didn't believe him, but he pressed on, nodding.
"It's not everyday I find a kindred spirit, and if what you say is true-that we're not the only ones-then I want to know what else is out there. I don't belong here, on this earth the way it is." He allowed truth to enter his words, so much so that it took her aback, her eyes widening in surprise as her head pulled back like a cat's. "And it took Barton's arrow through the gut to make me realize." He went silent, biting his bottom lip and looking away. How much more did he dare tell her? He hadn't meant for the last bit to leave, but the reality of it stung his subconscious. It'd been true, hadn't it? He didn't feel as though he had any place to be. He wasn't an Asgardian, he wasn't the Midgardian he'd been playing at. Where else could he be, besides the world she'd described to him before? Wasn't that his best option? His mind flew back to Thor, his once brother waiting for good news on the other side of the door. He'd broken his heart once before, letting go and falling from the Bifrost. Surely he couldn't have sewn it all together again and left it as fragile this time around.
"Go on." Natalia said when the silence became too much for her to stand.
"If what you said, and offered, was true, then that makes you my best bet for some semblance of belonging. It took me a long while to realize it, but we are alike. Far too much for me to ignore, not if there are others like us." He looked up at her through his lashes, watched her throat bob, wondered if Natasha was still inside and watching him or if Natalia truly owned her, mind, body, and soul, at this point.
"I feel it when I grow near you, feel the prickling in my skin when you touch me. Feel that strange tug," he took a hesitant step forward. How many did he dare take? "When I'm in the room with you. It's the magic, isn't it? That strange chaos that is mother to us both."
"And many more," she reiterated, chancing a smile.
"Then I want to know it. I want to know more about it, and you, and if you'll show me, then I'll break you out of here."
"And your brother? The others you vowed to work for?" She asked, one eyebrow arching.
"They don't understand, not like you can." He said, his voice going so soft that she had to press closer in order to hear. He stepped closer, this time pressing his fingers to the glass, and willing them to seep through the glass surface, pressing into her cell. Extended his hand to her.
"Let me get you out of here."
She took his hand, her lips splitting in a surprised, pleased grin that made his heart ache. He'd seen Natasha give that to him once when they'd started making progress, when she'd started to remember the small details of her life, the positives, and the negatives, far before this madness had begun. Their fingers threaded together, he tugged her forward, the glass melting around her until she was out of her cell and standing just beside him.
It was just as easy, he wondered, to thrust his hand into her heart, feel the muscle pulsing beneath his fingertips as he squeezed it tight between his fingers as she'd threatened to do, and watched her eyes go wide with horror, her mouth dropping open, and then everything went black around the both of them.
A/N: Sorry about the wait but I hope you enjoy the update! Not sure when I'll get around to another one what with NaNo going on, but I'll certainly try! Thanks for reading!