The Sweetest Rose-LokixOC

Prologue

Disclaimer: Loki and the Avengers belong to Marvel, Disney, and Stan Lee. I only own, Cassandra. This is a fanfiction; a non-commercial derivative work and I acknowledge this is a fan creation and that I hold no rights over any of the content. The photo (c) Google.

Cassandra thumbed through her text messages, absentmindedly sipping her coffee as she made her way through Central Park. These Sunday walks always helped clear the chaos in her head.

A few people passed her on the paved path and a familiar thought zoomed to the front of her mind. Her fingers crushed the phone in her hand. Five years had passed since half the world vanished because of an alien plot. New York used to be one of the most populous cities in the world, now it was a ghost town, Cassandra one of the 'lucky' few who hadn't been erased.

She didn't feel lucky. Slipping her earbuds in, Cassandra moved off the path into a thicket of trees, pushing the familiar sorrow back into its locked box where she didn't have to touch it.

Suddenly, a gusty wind ripped through the trees violently whipping them around. A branch as thick as a tree trunk crashed down less than two feet in front of Cassandra. Fear pulsed through her blood as she lifted her gaze to the sky.

Clouds parted, a pillar of light spiraling down to the ground. Cassandra dropped her coffee. A wave of energy blasted her off her feet. She crashed to the ground on her side as another gust slammed into her, pinning her in place.

When the light cleared, a dark silhouette appeared through a thin layer of smoke less than a yard away. Pain throbbed in her hip as she slowly lifted herself up for a better look. The ghostly wind vanished as quickly as it had come.

In a matter of seconds, the rest of the smoke dissipated, and Cassandra could see a man sprawled on the ground unmoving. No, not a man. An alien.

Panic coursed through Cassandra. She scrambled across the grass toward her phone. Halfway through dialing 911 the man emitted a groan.

Her fingers froze on the screen, her eyes shifting back to the unconscious alien. He wore strange clothing. A dark green overcoat studded with bronze armor at the shoulders. Beneath the coat, he wore a leather tunic with a high collar and matching leather pants tucked into knee-high boots.

Despite herself, Cassandra crept closer. Her breath caught in her throat when her gaze landed on the alien's face. Recognition thrummed through her. Years ago, footage of this man splashed across every television and newspaper across the U.S. when he brought an invading force from space to conqueror Earth. Loki the God of Mischief and Lies.

After seven years he still looked the same, untouched by time. Well he would. Gods did not age.

Deep cuts marred his long pale face, jagged red oozing lines. Blood trickled from a gash at his temple, matting his slick black hair to his skull. Cassandra's mother was a nurse, so she mentally categorized the severity of his injuries.

Most of the cuts needed stitches and the bruising was severe enough for her to worry about internal injuries.

By rights, Cassandra should leave him here to suffer for the things he'd done, but the world had already lost too many lives. She scooted over to him, gingerly studying the wounds.

Carefully, running her hands over his limbs, she checked for contusions. Loki groaned again when Cassandra accidently pressed a deep wound in his side. Fresh blood gushed out over the leather as she slid her hand away.

Tearing a strip off the bottom of her t-shirt she cinched the cloth around his waist directly over the wound.

A hand seized her wrist in a bruising hold, halting her ministrations. Sapphire eyes peered up at her full of fire. "Don't touch me, mortal!"

"You need help! I'm trying to stop the bleeding!" She gritted through the pain, the bones in her wrist threatening to snap beneath his vise-like grip.

Loki released her, rising to his knees, his long lanky frame weaving as he tried to maintain his balance. Blood seeped through the makeshift bandage, spattering the grass. His eyes were cold as he looked at her. "I'm a god. There's nothing you can offer me woman."

"Except First Aid, you stubborn ass." Cassandra shot back. Why she argued with him she didn't know. Maybe because his ridiculous stubbornness irritated her.

The ground trembled violently beneath them. Cassandra pitched forward, her chin slamming into the god's shoulder. They collapsed into the grass in a heap with her sprawled atop him.

Loki snarled, shoving her off. "Get off me this instant!"

"You son of a-" Cassandra broke off when the earth heaved again.

Loki's sneer disappeared as electricity charged the atmosphere. "What in Odin's name is going on?" He demanded.

"I have no idea." She breathed, just as clueless.

Startled cries filled the air, ripping Cassandra's attention away from the injured god. Time seemed to slow and then reverse as people flickered into view all around them. Her jaw dropped as more and more people popped into existence.

Hope swelled in her breast, threatening to break open a flood of emotion. They were coming back. Everyone was coming back.

Utterly amazed, Cassandra could only watch events unfold around her. By the time she remembered Loki, she turned around to find him gone. The only proof of Loki's existence, the blood drying on her hands.

A/N: What do you think? I'm not big on prologues but this story just called for it. I was inspired to write this because of the show coming out this summer. I don't have the app, but I'm definitely going to get it to watch Loki. For those of you reading ATBC, I'm working on Chapter 14. Consider this an early Easter present.

As always, comment and vote and have a great day!