The longer she was able to use her magic, the better she became at controlling it. Because most of the Avengers trusted her, Rhodey allowed the dampening cuff to stay turned off all day every day for the next week. Jak grew more confident in her abilities and she and Wanda sparred with each other most days.
Loki had broken more than one rib in his fall from the roof and he'd managed to snap the bones in his forearm as well. Jak felt immensely guilty and avoided him while he healed in the infirmary. It only took him two days, given that he was a magical immortal man from outer space, but even once he had healed, Jak still managed to avoid him. Since she knew he was monitoring her door with a spell, she slept in a variety of odd places, such as the custodial office, Wanda's floor, and once even in the vent ducts. During the day, she used her phone to view live security footage and keep an eye on the trickster so that she could know just what rooms to go to in order to avoid him.
Of course, the effort it took to actively avoid someone seeking her out was exhausting and she knew she wouldn't be able to keep it up for long. And despite her growing memory of how to use her magic, she still wanted Loki to teach her how to use it more effectively. She hadn't even gotten a true lesson in before she'd knocked him off the roof.
"He knows I'm hiding you in here," Wanda commented, walking into her bedroom with a plate of food.
Jak looked up from her phone. In her free time, she'd been trying to learn more about social media. YouTube had sucked her into an endless trail of interesting videos about historical fashion. She very much enjoyed judging how accurate these videos were and reliving some of her favorite styles.
"You aren't going to let him in, are you?" she asked, wincing.
"No," Wanda set the plate on her desk, in front of Jak, "But you need to talk to him. He isn't mad about the roof."
"I know he's not."
"Then why are you hiding in here?" Wanda put her hand on Jak's shoulder, "Not that I mind the company, but you and I both know you can't avoid him forever."
"I don't know," Jak sighed and picked up the fork, she took a bite of her food, chewed, swallowed, and then looked Wanda in the eyes, "I want to learn from him, but he makes everything so complicated."
"What's complicated?" Wanda asked, sitting on her bed.
Jak set her fork down again and rubbed her forehead. "He's… this is stupid."
"What?"
"He's very good looking."
Wanda laughed lightly. "Yes, I suppose he is."
"And he seems to be interested in me. Possibly romantically?"
"Yes?"
"But it is probably just manipulation, right? No one in their right mind would trust the god of tricks and lies. I don't know what he might be scheming, but I don't trust for a second that he feels anything for me beyond interest in my past. He's curious about me and as long as I have secrets he'll find me worth his time. But he can't possibly like just me."
"Can't he?" Wanda asked, "Why not?"
"He accused Steve of liking me just because I remind him of Peggy. I think Loki only likes me because I'm something interesting to pass the time while he's on earth. I'm like, like a waiting room magazine!"
"What?"
"I'm interesting enough to keep him occupied in a boring situation, but once he's flipped through all my secrets he'll set me aside and forget me," Jak picked up her fork and took another bite of food.
"I shouldn't tell you this, but when I am around the both of you, his mind is a bit chaotic," Wanda said.
"That seems normal for a man who was tortured into trying to take over the planet," Jak replied, "I'd be more surprised if his mind wasn't constantly chaotic."
"Oh it is, but it is a different madness than when he is around the others. Like he is unsure of himself. Like he wants to impress you and capture your attention the way you've captured his," Wanda leaned closer and lowered her voice, "Sometimes I have to actively block his emotions because he projects them so loudly around you."
Jak felt her cheeks go red and she focused on eating until she could put together a coherent thought.
"Really?"
"He likes you. And I get the feeling you like him too."
"Are you reading my mind?"
"No, but you practically have hearts in your eyes," Wanda laughed and pulled her legs up to sit pretzel legged on the bed.
"I do not!"
"If you weren't worried about him tricking you, would you finally agree to go on a date with him? I know he's asked you."
Jak suddenly felt a wave of panic rush through her. Her hair lifted into the air and her skin began glowing. Her plate of food began to float away and small items throughout the room joined it.
If Loki actually liked her then it would be okay for her to like him too. She wouldn't have to scold herself and tell herself that he was up to no good. And then she had no defense to his winning smiles and pet names. She had no excuse to turn him down because she did actually want to spend time with him. The notion was terrifying.
And exciting.
She took one deep breath and all of the floating items in the room dropped. With a quick apology to Wanda, she stood and left the room. She didn't have to go far before she came across Loki, boredly lounging on a table, reading a book. He looked up when she stepped closer and when she watched his expression closely, she could see him fighting a genuine smile, covering it up with a bored quirk of his mouth and a raised brow.
"Ready to apologize at last?" He asked.
It threw Jak off and she stopped walking. Her arms crossed at her middle and she hunched her shoulders forward slightly.
"What?"
"For throwing me off the roof?" He sat up and closed his book, dog earring the page.
Jak swallowed nervously. In her conversation with Wanda, she'd forgotten about what had caused her to start hiding from Loki in the first place. Her first instinct was to say sorry and ask how his healing process had been. But she ignored that instinct and forced herself to focus on why she'd actually sought him out.
"You owe me a magic lesson."
"You think so?" He set the book aside and slid off the table, crossing his own arms as he took a step closer to her. She didn't move and soon he was nearly on top of her, leering down from inches away.
"Our bargain was that if I answered a question, you'd teach me magic. I answered several questions and you didn't teach me anything," she jutted out her chin and did her best not to look away. She had the sudden thought that his eyes were spectacular.
"I suppose not," he mused. "What makes you think I still want to teach you? After all, you broke my bones and then abandoned me. You've been hiding from me for a week. Clearly you have no interest in being a diligent student. I cannot be an effective teacher if you only let me teach on a whim."
"Well, I suppose if you don't want to teach me, then there is nothing I can do," she shrugged, her racing heart clashing with the casual gesture. "I will tell Rhodes to turn the cuff back on and ignore you if that's what you want."
"You're terrible at bluffing, dear," he took a step back and then leaned down so that they were eye to eye, their noses nearly touching. "But luckily, I would be happy to give you a lesson. In magic, not bluffing. I suppose I do owe it to you."
"G-good," she nodded and then worked up her courage, "And as a show of good faith, I'll even answer another question."
"Oh yes? Hmm, well let me think of what I'd like to ask -"
"I'll answer a question you asked me a while ago," she continued and took a deep breath, "You asked me why I wouldn't go on a date with you."
He didn't hide his expression this time. It was pure shock.
He stood tall and blinked at her, opening his mouth and then closing it again with a curious tilt of his head. His confusion gave her confidence and she plowed forward.
"I wouldn't go out with you because I didn't think you actually wanted to go out with me. I assumed you just wanted to manipulate me and learn my secrets so that you can forget about me. Or that I was just an amusing way to pass the time."
He opened his mouth again but she cut him off.
"So now you answer one of my questions, Loki: why do you want to go on a date with me? Tell me the truth so I can know how to treat you. Are you just my magic teacher? Or are you interested in me as a person as well?"
He was quiet for a long moment and she thought her heart might beat out of her chest. She wasn't sure that she'd ever been so scared of hearing an answer before in her life.
"I'm gonna go," a voice piped up. Jak jumped in surprise when she saw Sam Wilson standing in the corner of the room. It looked as if he'd been tinkering with Red Wing, his drone. He'd been so quiet she hadn't even noticed him sitting there.
"I'm so sorry," she whispered as he walked past, "I didn't mean to… we can have this discussion elsewhere. You don't have to leave."
"No, no," he chuckled and punched her shoulder very lightly, "This sounds important. Don't let him weasel out of an answer, alright? If he does, dump his ass."
She nodded, too embarrassed to do anything else and watched Sam walk away. When he was gone, closing the door behind him, she turned back to Loki and saw him smirking.
"I suppose I'd better tell you what you want to know before he tells the Captain and we are interrupted."
Jak hadn't even thought of that, though she knew Steve and Sam were close friends. She hadn't even thought of Steve at all. Or how he might react to hearing about the conversation she was having with Loki. Would he be upset? Surely not. She liked him. She enjoyed his company, but she could never consider him anything more than a friend. And unlike with Loki, she had a valid excuse that could not be undone. Steve killed her father. And even though her father was a wicked, awful person, he'd still been her father and Jak could not forget.
"I find you fascinating, Jaklyn," Loki spoke up, interrupting her thoughts, "And for a time, I was annoyed at myself for being so concerned with a Midgardian. My brother is hopelessly in love with one of your species, though we all know he will outlive her by a millennia or two. I try my best to learn from and avoid my brother's mistakes."
Jak held her breath.
"But it would seem that you are, perhaps, not as short lived as the rest of your species. So I am no longer irritated at my fascination with you," he clasped his hands behind his back and looked her up and down, "But, to answer your question truthfully, I must say that I do not know you well enough to be certain of how I feel about you."
"Oh," she blinked, expecting a bit more of a dramatic answer. She supposed he made a fair point. She'd been avoiding him most of the time that she knew him, so how could he possibly know how he felt?
"I will say this though," he leaned in close again, "I do find you attractive and I enjoy being in your company. Perhaps if you stop running off, I might get to know you better, hmm?"
"I'm sorry for avoiding you," she said, an enormous pressure lifting from her chest now that he'd voiced his feelings. It would only be fair, now, for her to do the same. "I was embarrassed. I had so little control of my powers and I hurt you. I should have taken responsibility for what I did, but I was afraid I'd do it again or Rhodes might take away my magic."
"The Colonel has been quite busy this past week, dealing with some impending threat or something. I think he may have forgotten you," Loki chuckled and took a step back, leaning on the table he'd previously been lounging on. "As for my wounds, I am well healed and eager to help you stop yourself from unintentionally hurting anyone else. Of course, I will also be teaching you how to crush your enemies, but only when you want to."
"Thank you," she told him, a smile coming to her face.
"Also, I don't think we should train on the roof anymore."
"No, probably not."
"Stark had a fit about the air conditioners we ruined," Loki rolled his eyes, "I'm glad you've taken care of that issue while you've been avoiding me."
"I'm glad Mr. Stark is a billionaire," Jak laughed, "Those were expensive A/Cs!"
"We'll train in the more indestructible sparring room, where Thor exercises," Loki said and then got a crafty look in his eye, "Though, I'll be sure to find somewhere a bit more atmospheric for the date I plan to take you on."
"The date?" She choked.
"How will I ever have a more certain idea of what I feel for you if I can't get to know you a bit better?" He challenged, "What say you to six o'clock this Saturday? We can go to dinner together, perhaps in town at a restaurant? I grow tired of the Avengers' attempts at cooking."
A familiar panic rose up inside her, but she pushed it back down and nodded with confidence she did not feel.
"Six o'clock. I can ask Mr. Stark if we can borrow a car," then she paused and scratched the back of her head, "Err, do people still have chaperones for this sort of thing? Vision might be a good choice to -"
"Do you not trust me to behave honorably?"
"No, no! I'm sorry, I just… I've never been on a real date before and I haven't courted anyone in almost a hundred years," she rushed to explain and then backtracked, "But, no, I don't trust you to behave honorably. Ever."
"I suppose I can't really be offended by that," he sighed and fell into a dramatic bow, "But for you, I will be nothing short of noble, charming, and virtuous… until you wish me to be otherwise."
The wink he threw in at the end almost made her cancel the date right then and there, but the goosebumps running all over her skin told her to just go with it.
A note from the author: Sorry it's been a hot minute since I've updated! I was all ready to update last week, but I can't remember what stopped me. Anyway, thanks for your patience and I hope the wait was worth it. The romance is going to pick up a smidge from here on out so prepare yourself for that.
Special thanks to zxnightfox for your reviews! Unfortunately, it may be a little bit before Bucky is fully in the story (though he'll continue to make smaller appearances), but I'm glad you are enjoying the story anyway! :D
Until next time!