The following day had made concentration to be quite a difficult task. Whenever something demanded her attention, Dahlia was torn between exhaustion and daydreaming. On one occasion, while aiding a couple of agents on a search for a woman named Jennifer Walters (though she had missed why the woman might be important), she thought she had seen Loki walking the streets of New York in an all-black suit. However, by second glance, it was just some stranger that seemed to be crossing the street to get to work. By the time she was heading home (which was just a little earlier than scheduled), she felt completely drained. Though no one had really made mention of it, it was obvious that she hadn't gotten much of any sleep.

She would feed the cats, but this time, she was too tired to bother feeding herself. She had crashed hard on the couch - no lights, no television. She was just out.

That was, until the cats started calling.

It was like a head-splitting siren. She had never heard anything quite like it, though they seemed to be irate about something. They sounded from the balcony upstairs, and as she went to investigate, her mouth dropped slightly. She watched all six of them as they sat on the balcony - a couple of them perched on the chair - meowing at a red-tinted sky. As she came to the sliding door to get a better look, she spotted what appeared to be like a storm in the distance - a hurricane, only there was no rain. Out in the distance, it was like a vortex of clouds and thunder.

It was no ordinary storm, and as such, it was something worth checking out.

Dahlia left the whining felines behind, and though she could hear them a good ways past the house, she was persistent about finding put what this thing was, and what caused it. She drove down the road, and as she did, she could see black shadows drifting towards the cyclone.

Her heart lurched for a moment.

Nightmares.

Whatever this thing was, it was luring dozens of them to its center, and they seemed to be riding it in a continuous circle.

The car was in motion for about ten minutes before she found a place to pull off the freeway in order to get closer. Out here, the winds were significantly heavier. Leaves and small debris were blowing in all directions, as if a tornado was tearing its way through the city. Yet, despite the dangers, seeing the Nightmares all gathered in one place was an opportunity she couldn't pass off.

It was time to start slicing down their numbers.

They didn't even seem to notice her, however, even as she climbed out of the vehicle. She hadn't much of a clue how she might be able to get to them - if she got too close to the cyclone, there was no telling what it might do.

Dahlia did the only thing she could think to do. She summoned one of her blades, throwing it with precision into the storm. There was a small flash of red, no doubt it was blood, and she was certain she had hit at least one of the monsters.

Then suddenly, the swirl of the crimson clouds seemed to slow down in response. Dahlia watched as the others retreated into the eye of the storm, and suddenly, the clouds began to descend, much like the tail of a tornado.

Shit...

As she summoned back her weapon, she watched as a figure appeared just as the black shroud would touch the ground and then dissipate. She took a cautious step back.

The monster that appeared before her - she had never seen anything like it, and she was beginning to think it wasn't native to earth, either. It was mostly white, like some albino alien that could barely be considered humanoid, regardless that it had two arms and two legs. Along its body were gashes of red blood, as if someone had tactfully sliced it with a precise razor. Wisps of white emanated from it with a fire-like effect, and it possessed claws like a great wolf.

And its face... it was like something that came out of one of those horror films. Its mouth seemed abnormally small at first, but as it would let out a monstrous, shrill scream, the orifice opened vertically, exposing numerous rows of teeth, like a leech. The nightmarish abnormality charged at her, its long legs carrying it across the grassy plain faster than Dahlia had anticipated.

This time, both blades were sent out to attack, one of them striking it across the arm as the other was barely dodged. However, it didn't seem to do much to damage it. Dahlia panicked for a moment, then launched herself into the air before it could reach her. As she did, however, something snatched her by the ankle, like a tentacle, and it wasn't until she was slammed into the ground that she realized it was the monster's long tongue that snagged her from the air.

With a wince, Dahlia propped herself up. As soon as the slimy rope had released her, its tip enlarged into a frightening display of a razor-sharp teeth, much like its hosts. It was like staring at a skinny eel.

She grabbed the tongue just behind its ugly fangs, forcing the alien to stumble forward. As she would slice the tongue clean off, a screech of pain emitted into the air, loud enough to even make the Valkyrie wince.

Dahlia took this moment to finish the horror off. Her sickles would return to her, giving the monster two, fresh cuts before she would finish it. She jumped onto it, jamming both blades into the beast's chest. Again, it would scream a horrible, deafening sound, but not for long.

Using the pair of edges to separate its ribcage, Dahlia silenced the ugly creature once and for all. She hadn't even noticed the blood on her front as she watched the storm cave in on itself. Nightmares fell from the sky like rain, their tentacles limp behind them as they hit the ground, thud after thud.

There was something else...

A larger figure fell from the eye of the storm, and as it hit the ground, Dahlia watched with terror.

She was running ahead before she could even process her concern. As she came closer, she first stopped before a golden helmet - it possessed horns on its top, curved like her blades.

No...

Her eyes lifted to the limp body that was lying face-first in the ground.

"Loki!"

She hurried to him, falling to her knees beside him to roll him onto his back. His eyes were closed, and he gave no response. She gave him a firm shake, grabbing him by his leather armor before she would yell at him again.

"Hey, wake up!"

Still nothing.

She sighed, sitting up for a moment. He still seemed to be breathing, but he was most definitely unconscious.

"What on earth were you doing in there?" she muttered, although she knew she would get no answer from him. At least, not right now.

It was a bit of a struggle, but she managed to get him into the passenger seat and drove him back to the house on the hill. By now, the cats were silent, and all that remained was Bo, who was sitting on the living room chair, watching curiously as she dragged Loki inside and onto the sofa.

Now that she could see him in the light of the room, there were gashes all along his body. Whatever that creature was, it had gotten its claws into him, and the wounds were deep and seemingly poisonous. The flesh around the cuts appeared bruised and blackened.

Hopefully, she could do something to alleviate it.

She dialed Thor's number, for starters. She supposed it was no real surprise that once again, the God of Thunder was not answering his phone. Perhaps it was possible that he didn't even know how to use the thing. Regardless, she didn't bother to leave a message this time. She needed a few things to cure this poison. She hurried up the stairs and onto the balcony. From one of the flower pots, she pulled pulled out a dead seedling, though thankfully, it wasn't a blossom or even a leaf that she needed.

She swiftly went into the kitchen, nearly tripping over the cat in the process. "Damnit, Bo!" she growled. Of course, the cat nearly gave Dahlia a look as if it was her fault.

She grabbed the mortar and pestle, mashing up the roots thoroughly before she would grab a bottle of water. She poured some of it into a pot, along with the ground roots, and then set it on the stove to heat up. While she would wait for the water to boil, she returned to Loki to find that while he was still unconscious, he was now breaking into a cold sweat. He looked incredibly uncomfortable, as if he was having a horrible nightmare that he couldn't wake up from. She took these moments to take off his upper clothes. She would need complete access to the wounds if she was going to do this right.

"Hang in there," she whispered, though it was difficult to keep her own self together in her panic. Never had she shown this much concern for any of the S.H.I.E.L.D. workers that got hurt. Aiding them was no real panic, but for some reason, she felt fear now.

She grabbed a cloth from the kitchen and drenched it in cold water, giving the concoction on the stovetop a quick stir before she would return to Loki. She placed the wet cloth on his forehead with care, kneeling beside the sofa. There wasn't much else she could do until the water had started boiling. Until then, it seemed like waiting for a lifetime.

Finally, after checking on the root-water a couple of times, she would bring the pot over to the couch, using her fingers to apply a brown, smelly paste onto the incisions. She even used the excess to make sure every cut was thoroughly coated.

Now, all she could do was wait for the infection to go down.

She placed her head on the side of the sofa, sighing quietly. Again, she wondered how the God of Mischief had gotten himself into this mess. Indeed, it did seem that neither of them could stay out of trouble.

Her eyes closed, her exhaustion once again catching up with her as she would drift off.

She didn't even recall dreaming. She thought she might have heard Bo mewling for a brief moment, but she was too tired to even respond.

Then, as her eyes reopened to sunlight, she jumped up. To her surprise, she was lying in her bed. Everything seemed...utterly normal.

Had the entire thing been an elaborate dream?

She sat up, making her way down the stairs. As she passed by the living room, she paused, noting the empty pot sitting on the table by the couch. The room, however, seemed deserted.

Of course, he left.

Dahlia huffed slightly, but she smiled faintly. He must have been feeling well enough to at least get up and move around. For that, she was relieved.

Then, as she came into the kitchen, she swore she must have jumped five feet in the air when she saw a shirtless someone standing by the table, looking through one of the bay windows.

"Fuck..." she exhaled, catching her breath. "I thought you left."

Loki looked at her, slightly alarmed. As he turned to face her, she noticed his wounds had healed, leaving behind only a couple of scars, both of which were barely even noticeable. "Should I?" he inquired casually. "...Leave?"

"Oh, no..." she murmured, smiling. "You should probably rest." Once she had gathered herself, she opened up the fridge. She would prepare two mugs of hot chocolate. "You look better than you did last night."

"I've been through worse, I promise you." Loki sat at the table. "You did a fine job of cleaning up the mess, I see. How?"

"Helebrede blossom roots," she said, placing the two mugs in the microwave to warm up. "The best antivenom you could get in Asgard."

"How did you get your hands on helebredes?"

"There was a small handful of seeds in the headquarters that I might have stolen a few months ago," she murmured. "Since then, I've kept them on hand."

Loki gave her an entertained smile. "Well, if you hadn't stolen those seeds... I may not be sitting here right now."

Dahlia chuckled, making light of the topic. "You're a God. You would have found a way." She took the cups from the microwave, setting one of them down in front of him as she would sit across from him at the small, round table.

"What's this?"

"Not coffee," Dahlia answered vaguely, smiling.

"It's not ale, either," he came to his own conclusion.

"No. It's even better."

Loki eyed the drink for a moment before he would try a small sip of it. She watched his expression shift from reluctance to pure satisfaction.

"Hot chocolate. Best beverage this realm has to offer."

Helping himself to another sip, he hadn't even answered her, though was quick to set down the drink with a hiss of pain. Instantly, Dahlia straightened in alarm.

"What?" She watched as he inhaled deeply, then fanned his hand at his mouth. Dahlia giggled. "Well, yeah, it's hot."

She invited him to help himself to a shower, and she was glad that today was her day off. While she very much needed the rest, she needed to take some time to clean up the field of Nightmare corpses. Hopefully, someone else hadn't already stumbled across them.

She got herself changed as she waited, wiggling into a pair of black, stretch pants and a red tank. She was getting her shoes back on when the bathroom door opened, and Loki came out, fully dressed, his black hair still damp.

She was almost disappointed he hadn't come out in less clothes, really.

"Leaving so soon?" he asked her.

"I have a mess to clean up," she said. "Someone's got to do something about those dead Mares."

"Ah," Loki smiled, taking a couple of steps to her. "In that case, let me help."

"Loki, you should be resting."

"I'm perfectly fine. It's the least I can do."

She supposed she couldn't deny his assistance, and she was beginning to enjoy his company more than she cared to admit. "Before we go..."

He watched her curiously as she rose to her feet, and she came closer. Seeing him alive and well gave her peace of mind, but it also left her struggling with something else. She didn't think she could get enough of this man - if one could really call him such.

"What troubles you, pet?"

As he looked down at her, she could tell Loki was hosting the same sort of struggle, even if he played it much cooler than she had.

She could just take him right here and now, but something held her back. He was, after all, still recovering. Besides, there were more important things to be addressed.

"Nothing," she lied, offering a smile. "I'm just glad you're okay."