Halloween Hearts • Loki Odinson

10 • Danny Phantom

"So, you've finally discovered my deep dark secret." Viv chuckled. She didn't seem concerned by the fact that Loki now knew about her little crush.

"I hope I haven't hurt you. Or made you uncomfortable." Viv said, not looking up at him out of nervousness.

"You're probably confused. Or upset. Or angry. I would be. It's silly. It's humiliating. A stupid human girl is complicating your life with unnecessary sensitivities. I'm sorry." Viv continued.

"After my ex, I swore off romance. Guess I was scared. The past few days have been crazy. Ria's birthday is coming up and work has been extra demanding. I guess all of that stress piled on top of a stupid crush on a god and then that dream...made me crash." Viv said.

"So go on, have your rant," Viv said, grinning at Loki.

"I'm sorry Vivian..." Loki started, and Viv nodded, expecting his response.

"You're not into mortals?" Viv offered with a laugh.

"I'm not exactly "into" anyone at all as you'd say," Loki said, offering Viv a small smile to hopefully make her feel better while he rejected her.

"That's alright. Unfortunately, I can't exactly turn off my feelings so I'm gonna keep liking you. For a while at least. We can still be friends though, right?" Viv asked.

"I'm surprised you consider me a friend," Loki said.

"I've considered you a friend since Halloween. Come on, we're getting something to eat. I'm starving."

...

Surprisingly enough, things had gone well between Loki and Viv. She wasn't too upset about the rejection, but still had feelings for the God of Mischief. Although, they did seem a little...close...at times. And they didn't tell anyone what happened or what they talked about. When asked, they'd both respond with "it doesn't matter" or some variation of that, and nobody dared question it out of respect (for Viv. Loki, not so much).

And Viv was now allowed to use her powers openly, albeit not often, but she did use them occasionally.

But something else was on Viv's mind now. Ariel J. King. Her little girl.

It was only a week until Ariel's birthday and Viv was going to make it magical. After all, her little girl was about to turn 0.5 decades old.

Instead of going for a space theme like her 4th birthday, or a dino theme like her 3rd birthday, Viv was going to find out exactly what her daughter wanted this year through her secret agent.

Morgan H. Stark.

Viv has employed Stark Jr. to gather information for her, and Morgan was more than happy to help. She had told Viv that Ariel was interested in space (per usual), carnivals and circuses (strange twist but cute), and superheroes (obviously).

And there was something else that Ariel seemed curious about:

The whereabouts and story of her anonymous father.

When Morgan mentioned that, Viv perked up.

He was horrible to me. But what if he's changed? It wasn't like he raped me or abused me...people have been in worse relationships. Maybe he has changed? Maybe he's moved on! Maybe he's dating someone else so he'll have zero interest in me!

That poor (currently theoretical) girl.

And so when she went to work while Ariel stayed with Ophelia and Marshall, she decided to consult the Avengers - or at least, the small group of them that we're available at the time.

"So what does the council think?" She asked, after explaining her predicament.

"Just tell Ria that her Dad is a bad person. Well, I mean, unless he's not. I don't know what he did to you, but he sounds like a bad person." Natasha said.

"But that'll break her heart!" Viv said.

"Then tell him to come," Tony said.

"It's not that simple. What if he takes her? Or hurts her? Or just doesn't show up? What if he acts like an asshole? But if he doesn't come it'll hurt Ria!" Viv panicked.

"How about you meet up with him in advance? There's still a week before Ria's birthday." Loki suggested.

"That's it. It might suck but at least Ria won't be in any danger." Viv said.

"Viv, are you sure you hate your ex? I know that whatever he did to you was bad and you're scared of what he'll do to Ria, but if you're willing to meet up with him...I'm not saying that I think you want to get back together with him, but do you want to reconcile with him?" Bruce asked. Viv was silent for a moment and the others waited for her answer.

"Do you know what the J in Ariel J. King stands for?" Viv asked, and members of the team shook their head.

"It stands for Jordan. Ariel Jordan King. I named Ariel after her father. Well, her middle name." Viv started, and some of the team gasped at that statement. She hates him, but she made Ariel's middle name his name.

"He sucked. He would go out and get drunk. He would flirt with other girls and then compare us when I got jealous. He'd point out my insecurities and if I got upset he'd get angry but if I didn't get upset he'd also get angry. He's the reason I try my best to avoid drinking. He's the reason I'm scared of dating. And yet I'm worried about him. What the hell, Viv?" She asked herself, burying her head in her hands. Wanda, Nat, Tony, Bruce, Steve and Loki all looked at her, extremely concerned.

"You're worried about him?" Steve asked.

"For the past five years. I still have stupid dreams about him and get worried that he's in trouble. I named my little girl after him! What is wrong with me?" Viv asked, and the group was scared that if they touched her, she'd shrivel up into nothingness or disintegrate. She looked so hopeless.

"Go see him, Viv," Wanda suggested, and that's when Viv lifted her head up to be met with Wanda's warm smile.

"Just for you. You can ask about Ria's party but I think you should see him anyways for you. One of us can come with you, if you want." Wanda grinned.

"No, no. You're right, I should see him, but I shouldn't need an Avenger to escort me." Viv nodded.

"Are you sure?" Tony asked.

"Oh please. You saw me with my powers. I'm like Danny fucking Phantom, bitch!"