Enchanted Shadows

Chapter 38 - Loki's Solitude

**POV:** Loki

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Maya was gone, taken by the Avengers back to their lair of self-righteousness. As I sat in the cold emptiness of the room, a flicker of something foreign crawled into my chest. It wasn't anger or frustration, those I knew well. No, it was...loneliness.

How amusing, I thought. The God of Mischief, feeling the pangs of loneliness. But it wasn't her absence alone that stirred this feeling; it was the knowledge that she was out there, surrounded by people who would feed her doubts, who would try to turn her against me.

"My, how they are desperate," I murmured to the empty room. "Desperate to have her back under their thumb."

I stood abruptly, unable to remain still as the thoughts circled my mind. They would try to poison her, make her believe I was the enemy. As if I could ever be the enemy in her eyes. I had molded her into who she was now, showed her the potential that they tried so hard to stifle.

"They think they know her," I scoffed, pacing the length of the room. "They have no idea what she has become."

---

Hours later, when she returned, I made sure to let her see the anger in my eyes. Let her feel the cold edge of my fury. She needed to understand what it meant to doubt me, to leave me.

"You were with them," I said, my voice low and dangerous.

Maya flinched at the sound. "Loki, I—"

"Do not lie to me," I cut her off, advancing toward her with deliberate steps. "You were with them. I can smell their lies on you."

She backed away, her eyes wide with a mixture of fear and guilt. Good. She needed to fear me. Fear was the only way to keep her from slipping through my fingers.

"I... I had to see them," she stammered. "They wanted to talk."

"And you thought it wise to entertain their deceit?" I hissed, my eyes burning into hers. "After everything I've shown you, after everything we've built together?"

"No," she whispered, her voice cracking. "I didn't want to... but they... Natasha..."

"Natasha," I spat the name like venom. "Always Natasha. She is your weakness, Maya. Your Achilles' heel. She will be the death of you if you let her."

"She's my sister," Maya said, a hint of defiance in her tone. It made my blood boil.

"She is your enemy," I snarled, grabbing her wrist and pulling her close. "Do you not see that? She would destroy us, destroy what we have, just to drag you back into the darkness you fought so hard to escape."

Maya's eyes filled with tears. "I don't want to hurt her," she choked out. "I don't want to hurt any of them."

"Then you are weak," I sneered. "Too weak to be by my side."

She trembled, the tears now spilling down her cheeks. "Loki, please..."

"Do not beg," I hissed, my grip tightening on her wrist. "You know what I demand. Absolute loyalty. Absolute devotion. You are mine, Maya. Mine. Not theirs."

Her eyes widened, and for a moment, I saw the flicker of defiance. The part of her that still clung to the idea of right and wrong, the part I hadn't yet crushed.

"Is that what you want?" she whispered. "For me to belong to you completely? To be your...your puppet?"

"Puppet?" I released her, the word sending a surge of fury through me. "Is that what you think you are? A puppet?"

She recoiled, her back hitting the wall as I towered over her. "I don't know what to think anymore," she cried. "You've twisted everything, turned me against everyone I cared about."

I leaned in close, my lips brushing her ear as I whispered, "I have shown you the truth. They kept you in the shadows, kept you weak. I have given you power, given you purpose. You should be thanking me."

"Thanking you?" she repeated, her voice wavering. "For what? For making me into this... this person I don't even recognize?"

"For making you strong," I snarled. "For making you more than the shadow of your sister."

She shook her head, her tears blurring her vision. "I don't know who I am anymore."

"You are who I say you are," I hissed, my fingers digging into her shoulders. "You are mine."

She closed her eyes, her body trembling beneath my grip. "Then what do you want from me?" she whispered.

"Everything," I breathed against her ear. "I want every part of you, every thought, every breath. You belong to me, Maya. And you will prove it."

"How?" she sobbed. "What do you want me to do?"

"Cut them off," I said coldly. "Sever every tie to them. Show them that you are no longer theirs to control."

Her eyes opened, wide and frightened. "You want me to...?"

"Yes," I whispered. "Destroy them."

She stared at me, horror and disbelief etched into her features. "I...I can't..."

"You can," I said, my voice like ice. "And you will. Because if you don't, then you are nothing. Nothing to them, and nothing to me."

"Loki," she choked, her voice raw with pain. "Please..."

"Do not beg for mercy," I snapped. "Show me your strength. Show me that you are the woman I have made you into."

She crumpled to the floor, her sobs tearing through the air. I stood over her, watching as she broke apart at my feet. It was beautiful in its own way, this breaking. Because once she was broken, I could rebuild her in the image I desired.

"Stand," I commanded.

She hesitated, then slowly, shakily, she rose to her feet, her eyes hollow. "I don't know if I can," she whispered.

"Then you are weak," I said, turning away in disgust. "And I have no use for weakness."

"No," she cried, reaching for me. "Please... I'll do it. I'll do whatever you want."

I turned back to her, my eyes narrowing. "Then prove it," I said coldly. "Prove to me that you are mine."

She nodded, her shoulders sagging in defeat. "I will," she whispered. "I'll prove it."

A cruel smile twisted on my lips as I took her hand, raising it to my lips. "Good," I murmured. "Now, we begin."