What If... HYDRA Got Hold of Loki?

seeing double

One thing Loki hadn't considered when he decided he wanted to go out into the rain is that he does not want to get the bed wet. Unfortunately, he is now sitting atop the covers in his soaking wet gown, and his bed is, of course, very wet. Luckily, Thor brought three pairs of clothes on this trip – which doesn't feel like many, but then, Loki's certainly not one to judge, given he's only changed clothes once in the last decade or so – so he slips off to find Loki a very oversized t-shirt to put on so they can wash his gown.

Thor promises he won't be gone long; just enough to grab a shirt and get him a shake to drink. Loki assumes he'll be fine for the few minutes that will take. He has his TV to keep him company, after all. What more could he ask for?

But then he starts to feel lonely.

It's stupid, he knows. He's been alone for how long? Even living here, he's woken up alone more often than not. But now he feels lonely? In these few minutes he has to himself, he really feels lonely?

But that's alright. Thor will be back soon. Any minute now, he'll hear his brother's footsteps down the hall, and he'll know he's on his way back.

And, sure enough, there are footsteps.

But they're not his brother's.

At least, they're not just his brother's. It sounds like a lot of people. Thor could be one of them, but it's much more than just him. He'd be concerned by the number of people if they weren't traveling at such a leisurely pace. If he heard running, he would be worried, but walking? It just means they want to check on him. Maybe they're going to try something new. Maybe they're going to make plans. Maybe they just want to see him. He'll find out soon enough, he's sure.

The first person in the room is Bruce. He's always a nice sight. A weird, somewhat creepy, very green sight, but a nice one nonetheless. Once Bruce steps out of the way, he can see everyone else that comes with him. Tony, Natasha (he loves when Natasha comes to visit), Scott, Natasha, Steve–

Wait.

Loki squints, trying to clear his vision, but nothing changes. He's not surprised; it already feels pretty clear. But there must be something wrong. Maybe he's on drugs again and he forgot, or maybe he just really needs his chocolate shake, or maybe he's really tired, but something is wrong.

He's seeing double.

But, like...

Just with Natasha.

And they look different, too. One Natasha wears the same cute gray top she wore earlier today. The other wears all black – a catsuit, he thinks they're called. One Natasha has blonde in her hair; bleached ends, he'd call them, though he doesn't know enough about hair to know if that's actually how this works. The other's hair is a plain red, no added (or removed) color to be seen.

Hair and clothing aside, though, Loki can hardly see the difference between them.

Well, actually, he supposes that's not quite true.

This new Natasha looks absolutely horrified at what she's seeing.

That's a pretty big difference.

She covers her mouth with her hand, her eyes going wide as she stares at him. "Oh my god..."

Loki cocks his head to the side. He doesn't get it. What's going on? Why is she looking at him like this? And why are there two of her? He's so confused. Everything in this world is so confusing.

Wait, no, they said something about this. They were going to find another Natasha. They were going back to his world, and they were going to find his...