a/n: So, long story short, I'm not dead. I did get married and go back to college though, so things have been busy on my end. Hopefully, some of you are still interested in reading, lol. If so, please enjoy the chapter and feel free to review with what you liked/didn't like. I always appreciate constructive criticism. Enjoy!

Chapter Twenty-One

When Stephen woke up, Gwen was still asleep. He smiled softly at her curled up figure, holding the stuffed pig close to her chest. Her eyes were still a little red, but she was smiling in her sleep. Whatever she was dreaming about, apparently she liked it.

He reached over and brushed his fingers softly through her hair. This small gesture woke her up. She looked around in confusion before seeing her father. She closed her eyes again and sighed tiredly. "Morning," she mumbled.

"Morning," he replied. Gwen was not a morning person. He was reminded of this every time he had to wake her up. "I should get back to the Sanctum. Wong will wonder where I've gone. Are you gonna be ok?"

She nodded. "Yeah, I'm good," she said. It was only partially a lie. Gwen didn't think she'd be ok for a while, but she also didn't want to burden her father more than she already had. "Thanks, dad. See you later."

"See you later, Gwen," he said, giving her one last wave before opening a portal and returning to the Sanctum.

With that, Gwen finally sat up. She heaved a great sigh and ran her hands through her tangled hair. "Stupid dream," she muttered to herself.

She hated being on her period. It affected her emotions so much. She was more sensitive, easier to piss off, and her feelings of loneliness increased tenfold.

Normally, Gwen didn't care about boys. What good were they to her? Most of them just annoyed her and the majority decided they didn't like her once they realized she was smarter than they were. But that one week of the month, her deeply hidden desire for companionship came into full force and manifested itself in her dreams. She had come to expect this every month.

But why did it have to be him?

It just so happened that Loki seemed to be the object her brain had settled on. That stupid, arrogant, asshole of a god. Oh, there was no doubt that he was good looking. Gwen had recognized this from the first time she had met him. But then he had opened his mouth and any interest she might've had in him had flown out the window. So why was she having these stupid dreams that focused on him?

It's just hormones, she thought to herself, trying to rationalize her way through her feelings. He's a good looking guy that you happen to spend a lot of time with, so your brain chose him. It doesn't mean anything. She nodded at her own words. Besides, it's partially your own fault for flirting with him.

That was probably a fair point. Loki's irritating game was probably another contributing factor to her dreams. But she wasn't going to stop. She would not give him the satisfaction of knowing he had won. She was going to finish the game he had started.

With that in mind, she made a move to get out of bed, but stopped when her insides screamed in protest. Gwen groaned in pain and fell backwards again. It took her another few minutes to work up the will to get up again. It still hurt, but she ignored that.

Stupid cramps, she thought bitterly. It was bad enough that her dreams were already being affected, but why did her stomach have to ache so badly as well? Why did women have to be cursed?

Gwen dragged herself into the shower and made herself presentable for the day. She dressed in maroon pants with her white Black Sabbath shirt, and straightened her blonde hair. Then she grabbed her ibuprofen and took a couple more than she normally would, because her cramps were a little bit worse than normal.

Gwen composed herself before opening the door to Loki's cell. He was awake this time, and fully clothed, thankfully. "Morning," she greeted him.

"Morning," he replied. There was something different about his tone, Gwen noticed. It was not hostile, or annoyed, or even flirtatious. He seemed a bit more reserved this morning as Gwen opened the door to his cage. They entered the kitchen in silence and sat down. Gwen immediately began to make breakfast for them.

"Are we to continue our interrogation of Conner?" Loki asked, breaking the silence.

The sound of his name made Gwen grind her teeth. "Most likely," she replied shortly. "Maybe we'll send you in there now. If we do, do us all a solid and kill him."

He smiled a little. "As you wish," he said, echoing the words she had been using with him lately. That brought a tiny smile out of Gwen before she yet again busied herself with the food.

"Where is Paige?"

Gwen jumped a bit. Steve's voice was louder and angrier than she had ever heard it. He was normally so calm and collected. "Probably with Clara. Why?"

"Conner's dead," he replied shortly. Gwen and Loki exchanged glances briefly, both looking shocked. "Paige left her knife and her blood covered shirt at the scene of the crime. We need to find her."

Gwen shrugged and actually smiled a little bit more. "Well, good luck."

Steve narrowed his eyes at her. "It's not funny, Gwen. A man is dead."

"Oh, please," she snorted, rolling her eyes. "Do you really expect me to cry over his dead body? The man killed my mother. He nearly killed me in the process. He emotionally and physically abused Paige for nineteen years. He was a complete asshole. He got what was coming to him. I'm not upset. In fact, maybe I'll come with you to find Paige. I need to thank her."

Steve could hardly believe his ears. He would not claim that Mike's death was something to cry over, but to show joy at the loss of human life was a bit disturbing. He hadn't imagined that Gwen could harbor such bitterness. In fact, she sounded a bit like Loki as she gave her speech. That was definitely concerning to him.

But he knew that it wasn't a priority right now. He had other things that he had to deal with first. He shook his head at them. "Just stay here. Don't leave this floor. If we need you, we'll call you." With that, he turned on his heel and left the two of them alone again.

Loki too was staring at Gwen, but for different reasons. He knew that Gwen was a sarcastic person and that she pretended not to care about things, but that speech was not her acting. She was entirely serious. He hadn't thought the blonde was capable of such emotions. He had thought that she was soft, even if she pretended otherwise.

Gwen just kept surprising him.

Steve made his way to Clara's floor. Steve didn't know how to feel. On one hand, Conner was dead and Conner was one of the last few people who knew where the scepter was. On the other, Conner was a horrible person who did horrible things. He wondered how Clara would react as the elevator doors slid open to the quiet floor.

No one was up, it seemed, so Steve walked over to her bedroom door and softly knocked holding his breath. Please be here, he thought to himself. After a minute with no response Steve cracked the door open. "Clara?" he asked.

"Reportin'," a tired voice answered. Steve opened the door wider and walked in. Clara sat up and rubbed her face as she woke up and Paige was curled up, still asleep beside her. "Can I help you Captain?" she asked, gazing up at him.

Steve looked at Paige asleep. It reminded him of the time he woke up next to her after Bucky had saved both their lives. How peaceful and sweet she looked. Innocent even… Steve shook his head, regaining his attention. "I need to speak with you," he told Clara. She nodded in response. He watched her as she glanced at sleeping Paige and gave a warm smile at her daughter. Clara got up and followed Steve out of room and into the main part of the apartment.

He took a deep breath before telling the news to Clara. He had calmed down somewhat from when he told Gwen and Loki. "Mike is dead," Steve told her right off. Clara gave him a baffled look.

"What? How? He didn't kill himself did he?" Clara asked.

"No... Paige got to him first," Steve told her. And before Clara could respond, Steve continued. "We found Paige's knife and bloody shirt at the scene," he told her. Clara drew her breath in and quietly processed what he had told her. And then she smiled and laughed quietly before looking back at Steve.

"I know I shouldn't be laughing but he got what he deserved, Steve," Clara began. "Two years he manipulated me. Nineteen years he tortured Paige. He killed Jessie and, hell, I'm sure he killed a lot more people." Clara spoke softly.

"But the scepter Clara…"

"There's other agents who know about it, I guarantee it. Mike just wasn't the one," Clara told him.

Steve bit his lip nodding his head in response. "I just need to talk to Paige now," Steve told her. Clara agreed and Steve walked back into her room. Paige was awake now and looking out the window over New York. "Paige," Steve addressed her. "You know why I'm here." She slowly turned to look at him.

"I do," she said simply.

"Why?" was all Steve asked.

Paige furrowed her brows at him. "Why?" Paige scoffed. "He hurt them!" Paige exclaimed. "He hurt mom, he hurt Gwen! He killed an innocent woman!" Paige raised her voice. He noticed that she didn't mention herself as one of Mike's victims.

"Paige..."

"Don't act like he's innocent," she growled. "He's just as much a murderer as I am!" Paige pointed to herself, breathing heavily. She was still glaring him down. Steve hated that she almost looked a little like Bucky right now. "I have no regrets about my decisions."

The Captain stared at her for another minute before he sighed tiredly. "I still don't think this was ok," he told them. "We care about you Paige, and we want you to adjust to this new world. You have to understand that you can't just kill someone. No matter how much they deserve it. Do you understand?"

She nodded, because she did. She was no longer in the jungle anymore. She was in civilized society. And there were rules that she would have to follow if she wanted to be a part of said society. Which she did. She wanted to be with her mother and with Gwen and with Steve. The three people that had shown her kindness and understanding during her time here.

And maybe someday, Winter would be able to join her.

"Good," Steve said with a nod. He gave a small pat on her shoulder and smiled a bit. "Bucky would be proud of you. I know he left you where I could find you, just so that you could learn about this sort of thing." Paige could only nod again, unable to form words. Steve left her alone.

Clara joined her as soon as Steve was gone. "Are you doing ok?" she asked.

"Yes."

"I hope you know that I don't hate you for what you've done, and I know why you did it," Clara continued. "But Steve is also right. I don't want you going around killing people. That's not the life I wanted for you. It's not what you deserve. Bucky knew that and that's why he left you behind, and I'm so glad he did." Paige remained silent. She wished that she could find the words to express just how deeply she cared for her mother, but she was not as eloquent as Clara. Clara understood this, and she pulled Paige into a hug. "I love you. And I'm so sorry for the mistakes your father made."

"He's not my father," Paige said. "Winter is more of a father to me than Conner ever was."

Clara nodded. Paige didn't talk about what happened to her in Hydra very often, and Clara didn't push the subject (for now). But she was so glad to hear that someone had cared for Paige enough that she saw him as a father figure.

If Clara ever got to see Bucky again, she was going to give him a kiss.

"Your mother," Loki said, drawing Gwen out of her thoughts. "How old were you when she died?"

"She died just after I was born," Gwen explained. "I don't even remember her." Loki nodded. "What's your mother like?" Gwen asked curiously. Loki stared. It was rare that they ever tried to engage in a civilized conversation and it always took him by surprise when Gwen did try. "You mentioned her once. You said that she wasn't like Odin. What is she like?"

He hesitated, for fear of letting his emotions get the better of him. He had to seem indifferent.

"She's… kind," he said. "I learned my magic from her. Thor was Odin's favorite by far, but Frigga loved us both equally."

Gwen nodded, trying to imagine having a mother like that. Gwen had never had to compete with any siblings for her father's affections, so she couldn't understand what that was like. And yet, somehow she felt like she did understand him. The more she talked with him and Thor, the more she felt she knew the real Loki. "I'd like to meet her someday."

"Odin does not let Midgardians on Asgard," he told her.

"Really?" He nodded. "Wow. Pretentious prick. No wonder you hate him." Loki laughed and Gwen joined in, but it caused her insides to twist again and she clutched her side briefly, screwing up her face in pain.

"What's wrong?" Loki asked. Gwen wondered if he was asking out of concern or curiosity.

She waved a hand in the air dismissively, though the pain did not pass. Hopefully the meds would kick in soon. "I'm fine. Just stomach aches," she explained. Slowly, she sat down on the couch. Any movement made her stomach burn, but once she sat still, she was given some relief.

"You don't look fine," Loki said, sitting himself on the armrest of the couch.

"It happens all the time, it'll pass," she told him. Maybe it's a cyst, she thought to herself. Alex had suffered from frequent ovarian cysts and this was how she described the pain. Gwen smiled at Loki. "But it's nice to know that you care so much about my wellbeing. It's very sweet."

And she was back to messing with him again. Her mood changed so frequently that Loki didn't know what to make of her half the time. But instead of showing his confusion, he merely returned her smile. "Well, I couldn't have you dying on me," he said. "Then you would owe me a second time."

"A second time?"

He nodded. "I saved your life and mine on that mission."

Gwen snorted. "Is that what you're calling it now? Saving my life?"

"Well, what would you call it?" he replied right away, wondering just what she would say. How far was she willing to take this?

She forced herself to sit up straighter and leaned closer to him, even though it hurt. A smirk crossed her lips. "Desperation," she said.

Loki returned her smirk. "Really?"

Gwen nodded. "Oh, definitely. Don't think I didn't pick up on that, your worship."

"How can you be sure?" he shot right back. "It was days ago. Surely you don't remember it that well?" There, he thought in satisfaction. See how she answers that. Her answer would prove just how far she was going to take this little act. Would she admit that she thought about the incident?

Gwen swallowed and smiled innocently. The perfect answer was on her tongue, which suddenly felt incredibly dry. "True," she admitted. "Maybe I just need a reminder." Gwen knew that she had crossed a forbidden line there. If anyone ever found out what she had just said, they would say that she had lost her mind. And maybe she had. All she knew was that it hardly seemed like a big deal to her. It was all a game to them. And Loki certainly wouldn't take it that far.

Right?

Her answer came as a shock to Loki. He really thought that she would've broken already. Very well, he thought. How serious is she?

He smiled as well. "Then I'll oblige." He slid off the arm of the couch and closer to Gwen, ready for her to back away in disgust.

Gwen, however, did not. Any thought she had had in her mind quite suddenly left her. She followed her gut and leaned forward, to meet him halfway.

Just as their lips brushed, Gwen felt like a switch was flipped. There was one last tug of agony that made her want to scream, and then, blissful relief. She sighed in relief and let the kiss happen. Electricity shocked her and spread through her entire body, tingling her fingers and toes. Everything felt much better. She hadn't felt so alive since —

Wait. Sudden relief?

Gwen pulled away very suddenly and grabbed at her stomach. Ibuprofen didn't work instantly like that. It gradually made it better. And besides, she had only taken it maybe an hour ago. This wasn't a cyst. Perhaps she was overreacting, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

"I need you to get Steve or Tony or someone," she told Loki seriously.

"What?"

"Hurry!" she told him. "I might have appendicitis, which is fatal if not treated right away."

Loki sat frozen for a bit more, unable to comprehend what had just happened. One minute they were kissing and the next she might die? Talk about changing moods. "Would you go?" Gwen shouted.

He stood up in a hurry and ran for the elevator, punching the button that took him to the top floor.

Gwen pulled out her phone meanwhile and called her father. "What? You can't survive without me for an hour?" he joked.

"Dad, I think I have acute appendicitis, and I'm pretty sure it just ruptured," she said.

"What?"

"I've been having stomach aches for a while but I just contributed that to my period, but just as I was sitting on the couch, there was this extremely sharp pain in my abdomen on the right side and then a feeling of relief," she explained. "That describes appendicitis right?"

"I'll be there in a minute," he replied before hanging up the phone.

Gwen tucked it back in her pocket and lay back, feeling dizzy. Her vision swam before her and the last thing she remembered was seeing the beginnings of a portal start to form.

Loki rushed through the elevator and into the penthouse. "Stark!" he shouted. "Rogers?"

Tony wandered out, looking confused. "What the hell are you doing here, Reindeer Games? And where's Gwen?" Steve joined Tony and they both glared at Loki suspiciously.

"She told me to get you. She says she has appendicitis and that she needs to be treated right away."

"Jarvis," Tony said. "Give me an update on Gwen's vitals."

"I'm afraid she does have appendicitis, sir," Jarvis replied. "She is currently passed out. Doctor Strange is with her."

"Jarvis, tell Bruce that we're going to need him and Cho in the medbay right away," Tony said sharply. Then he turned to Steve. "We need to get a gurney."

"I'll take Loki back," he said, as though Loki weren't right there. Tony nodded and took off to fetch the gurney.

Steve took Loki by the arm. "You better not have done anything to her," he warned the god, not without suspicion. He wouldn't be surprised if Loki had something to do with Gwen's sudden illness. Or maybe something else.

Loki sneered at him. "In case you've forgotten, I don't have my powers. How could I have done something to her?"

"I don't just mean like that," Steve replied sharply. Loki knew what he was referring to and he smirked. A part of him was tempted to tell Rogers exactly what kind of game the two of them were playing, but something told him to keep quiet about it. If anyone knew what was going on, they would put the two of them under closer watch. And then how was he supposed to entertain himself by messing with her?

Because that's all he was doing. Of course he didn't like some mortal. Sure, she was pretty for a Midgardian, but she was nothing more than a puzzle for him to solve. A game to play. A button to push. Nothing more.

When they returned to his floor, Stephen was closing a portal that a woman around his own age had just stepped out of. She ignored the sight of Loki and Captain America and rushed to Gwen's side. "How long has she been out?" she asked Stephen, taking Gwen's wrist in her hand.

Loki didn't hear Stephen's answer because Steve had rushed him into his cell and locked him away, keeping him in the dark.

Loki started to pace right away, wondering just what was going to happen to the blonde on the couch.