𝐂𝐇𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐌𝐀𝐒 𝐈𝐒 𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐀𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃 | ᶜᵒᵐᵖˡᵉᵗᵉᵈ

𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 ▸𝒍𝒐𝒌𝒊/𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒂

Life on Midgard was not, after all, as gruesome as Loki had first skeptically assumed. Of course, at first, he thought he would die of boredom here, and it was only through his pride that he did not come to beg Thor to take him back to Asgard. The only thing that made him feel better was the frequent teasing of the Avengers, predominantly Stark. But soon there was a pleasant distraction in the form of the witch Wanda Maximoff, who, along with other heroes, became a member of the Avengers. But the others didn't interest Loki. At first glance, he was intrigued by her - those deep eyes and the mysterious aura that flowed around her. Loki felt more potential from her than from all the Avengers put together. The world's most powerful superheroes, he chuckled to himself. Only Wanda deserved this. And Loki was drawn to her, some unknown force he could not resist, that he could not explain.

Before long, he understood why he was so drawn to her. Wanda wasn't born with her powers, of course. She got them when she and her twin brother, Pietro, joined Hydra. It came as a surprise to him to discover that it was the mind stone hidden in his scepter that had given her her powers. That was the reason, he realized, that's was why I was so drawn to her.

To his discontent, however, he had not yet had a single interaction with her. Not that he didn't try. But there was always someone to thwart him. It was as if the Avengers suspected that he was plotting and that he was attracted not only to Wanda but especially to her power. It was all smiling. And finally, he was in no hurry. Who knows how much longer he'll be cooped up here, and at least he had enough time to figure out how to win Wanda over. He knew the Avengers would make a mistake someday, and it would open the way for him to reach the young witch. He knew he would talk to her eventually, whether they liked it or not. And that day finally came.

Loki walked down the hall toward his room, cradling a pile of books he had not yet read. The team enjoyed Christmas time together, and though Thor offered to join them, Loki immediately turned him down. He had no desire to celebrate Christmas, least of all with them. And good thing he did, because as he passed Wanda's room, he noticed that not only was the door ajar, but muffled voices were pouring out of the room. There was a satisfied smile on his face, and he did not hesitate to knock briefly.

"Come in," Wanda said, and Loki went inside. She looked up from the TV and looked surprised to find that it wasn't one of the Avengers who had come to her. "What's wrong? Do you have a message for me from the others?"

He grinned mirthlessly and put the books on her desk. "Do I look like someone's errand boy?" he asked rhetorically, noting Wanda's wary eye on him, adding, "You don't have to be afraid of me."

"I'm not afraid of you. I just don't know what to expect from you."

"Ah, so the others have told you a thing or two about me, have they?" he snorted, leaning his loins against the table, folding his arms across his chest.

"Of course. They told me to watch out for you, that you were unpredictable, insidious-"

"-that I killed eighty people in two days, blah blah blah," he finished quickly, rolling his eyes. "Why look at everything so negatively? It could have been a lot worse, couldn't it?" Then he gave her a crooked smile. "The rednecks haven't even introduced us. I've-"

"I know who you are, Loki," Wanda interrupted, studying him. "Do the others know you're here?"

He laughed. "Of course not. But what about you?" he changed the subject, giving her a long look. "How come you're alone in your room? Why don't you spend Christmas with the others? You're an Avenger-"

She shook her head. "No, I'm not. I'm not an Avenger," she disagreed, her eyes straying back to the TV screen. "I ... feel like I don't fit in." She herself was probably surprised to confide her feelings to Loki, who tried not to look too pleased. But Wanda seemed more oblivious. This looks even better than I expected, Loki thought, savoring the strong presence of magic. "They all... know who they really are. They know what they're fighting for. They're heroes. And I've . . . messed up enough."

"But so them," Loki said, realizing how fragile Wanda was and therefore easily influenced. He couldn't really get a better chance. "Do you think they never screwed up? You don't think they've made any mistakes in their lives either? They pretend to save the world, to be indispensable, perfect... but that's not true, Wanda. Real power looks different. And the salvation of the world, too," he sneered, moving slowly toward her.

"What do you know about it?"

"Much more than they do, anyway. I've seen and experienced a lot. I could learn from the mistakes of my father, my brother, and my own." She looked back at him. He pointed at her bed with his finger, and she nodded and moved a little to make place for him. He sat down beside her. As he pondered how to phrase his next words properly, he raised his gaze to the small television. "Bambi?" he asked, realizing he knew what Wanda was watching.

She blinked in surprise. "You know it?" Then she smiled. "If you're afraid of crying, you don't have to. That part's been done."

He raised his eyebrows at her. "I don't cry."

She looked at him as if he had fallen from another world. Um, well... "You didn't cry when Bambi's mom died?"

"Oh, sure, it was very sad when the guy stopped drawing the deer," Loki replied quite seriously, and then- Wanda laughed out loud. He looked surprised and smiled. He didn't think he'd ever make anyone laugh. He was strangely pleased with the knowledge. "Wanda-"

"Don't say it," she interrupted and stopped laughing. He cocked his head. "Don't say I'm different from the others, that I'm better, and... because I'm not."

"That depends on the point of view," he replied calmly. There was a devilish twinkle in his green eyes. "Let's get out of here."

"What? We can't-"

"Why not? Must you report your every move to them? It's your life, Wanda, and they have no right to decide it."

"I've caused enough problems, I shouldn't..."

He grabbed her by the shoulders and looked urgently into her eyes as she looked up at him. "You told me that you don't feel like you fit in there," he said in a low voice of his own. Wanda stared at him and felt . . . understanding. He knew how she felt. She nodded slowly.

"I have no place in the world..."

"Neither do I. So far," he added quickly, and then his lips parted in a wide smile. He squeezed her shoulders and his pupils widened eagerly. "Just because we don't have it doesn't mean we'll never find it. And it's never too late to start looking for it..."