The Shapeshifter | Loki Fanfic

Part 1

"Little bitch." She'd been called worse. "What? Too scared to take me on?"

Compensating for something, are you? She thought.

The truck hit a bump and she winced as the collar pulled around her neck. Wipe that smirk off your face, agent.

He shoved her stomach with the head of the gun, taunting her into a response, while the other three armor-suited guards shifted nervously.

"Pathetic," he muttered, causing a surge of rage through her but it was gone as soon as it appeared.

Years ago, she would have escaped and taunted them until she let them catch her again. Now, there was no point.

They—an organization called SHIELD—were convinced there was something wrong with her and were determined to "fix" her. Give her to families to try and change her out of her wolf form or show any remaining humanity.

Instead, she'd lounge around and eat only when she had to. There was no reason to keep up her energy. The last family, her fifth, had given up on her and sent her back. So, once again, she was on her way to a new group, who also would give up on her and continue the cycle.

It had been five years since she had been in her human form—she wasn't sure she could even remember how to turn back. Her wolf form was her new default. Her white fur was barely white anymore, but her red eyes had never dimmed.

Cassie lifted her head up from her curled up position on the floor of the truck as she felt the truck stop. The guards aimed their guns at her, but she ignored them, and turned to the door of the truck, waiting to be left out. She knew which one would hit her again if she didn't follow them out the truck.

She found that out the hard way.

Someone on the outside of the truck opened it, and the bright sun had her squinting her eyes. Two of the guards with her stepped out of the truck—one of them pulling the chain collar to get her out. Once she hopped out of the truck, facing the man with an eye patch, who opened the door, the other two guards followed out beside her, keeping their guns aimed at her.

Sure, she did some very bad things years ago, so it made sense they would take precautions, but she had hardly lifted a claw in five years.

"Hello Cassie," the man with the eye patch, none other than Nick Fury, said. "It's been a while since I last saw you."

Fury seemed to be waiting for a reaction out of her, but she just stared at him, so he sighed, and gestured the two guards in front of her to follow him. The one with the chain pulled on it, making her grunt and follow.

She was going to come anyway—they just liked annoying her. They were lucky she didn't bite their arms off.

She missed a step and almost face planted onto the floor when she looked up at the building she was being led into. She might have been living under a metaphorical rock recently, but she'd have to be an idiot to not recognize the Avengers' tower. Fury must have been desperate to send her there.

Nick's guard opened the door to let him walk in and her own guards tugged at the leash to pull her along. It was insulting that they treated her like a dog but she was sure that was the point.

The Avengers—some she knew, some she didn't—were scattered about on various couches when she stepped out of the elevator.

"Avengers, Cassie." Fury gestured back and forth. "Cassie, the Avengers."

She had braced herself to see the man who inadvertently ruined her life but nothing prepared her for finally facing him. She was seething underneath, craving the day when she could finally have her revenge. Now was not the time so she made sure to not make eye contact.

"And Reindeer Games over here," Tony, one of the few she recognized, added, gesturing to a brooding raven-haired man in the corner, strapped with a complete set of golden armor.

He was unfamiliar but damn if she wasn't drawn to him.

"Loki is one of the captives here," Nick explained. Oh. Lovely.

"Fury, what's with the collar?" Someone she was pretty sure was named Bruce asked, looking uncomfortable.

"To keep her under control. You were briefed five years ago on what she did," he answered and Bruce turned white, practically squeaking. A red-head woman rested her hand on his and he visibly relaxed.

The red-head gave her a look that almost seemed like she was impressed while some of the others looked nervous, or even angry. Loki, on the other hand, gave her some kind of version of a smirk, and she'd be lying if she said that meant nothing to her.

She looked around the room, ignoring the rest of the conversation. Most of the walls were glass windows, giving her a surprisingly gorgeous view of the city. On the far corner was a bar that looked very...loved.

"Is shapeshifting the only thing she can do?" Tony asked and Fury nodded. She held in a snort. They had no idea what she could do.

"Then take the collar off. She hardly looks like she's going to hurt any of us, and if I remember the file correctly, which I always do, she won't care enough."

Fury frowned, and the red-haired lady added, "It's not like we're going to keep her on a chain the entire time she's here."

This arguing was giving her a headache already. If this was just an example of the next year, she was dreading it.

When Fury opened his mouth to, most likely, refuse, she shrunk herself down to a rat, scurried out from the collar, and went back to her recently accustomed wolf form.

Nick, for the first time since she had known him, stared opened mouthed at her, turning around and grumbling to himself. "I swear..."

"Well, looks like that's settled." Tony clasped his hands together with a grin and Fury stormed off with his guards, still talking to himself.

"Good luck," he called out before leaving. "You'll need it."

"Can I call you Cass?" Tony asked as she climbed onto the couch, scaring Bruce enough to make him scuttle away and the redhead lady went after him.

She didn't respond, which he took as agreement and grinned. "Cass it is."

Tony stood up and announced to...the room, "Order pizza, will you?"

Pizza. Man, it had been way too long since she had pizza. Some of her previous caretakers tried feeding her dog food—which was disgusting—and it would be an insult to call the stuff Fury would feed her food.