Loki's Little Witch [en]

chapter 20. the final hand

Wanda swallowed, trying to maintain her composure as she tightened her grip on the bottle of alcohol she held in one hand and the box of gauze she held in the other, feeling her breathing grow heavier with each step she took as she approached the lounge room, and she could feel the thoughts of everyone who was now just five steps away from her creeping into her mind.

She was too tired to try to silence them. Three steps and she could even hear his, so loud and indistinct, as if they were two voices arguing endlessly. One step and he appeared in her field of vision, hunched over, his eyes fixed on the floor, pressing his head with his hands as if trying to silence what seemed almost like screams to her.

And only a single pair of eyes turned in her direction as soon as the redhead entered the room. A look Wanda returned to Natasha for a moment before reaching the god of mischief. She hadn't truly lied when she said that nothing she could show her would torment her more than she did herself every day, because despite she could hear what was going through her head, unlike the others, Natasha only wondered if Steve would be able to see his niece the same way after what she had put him through.

"Sorry."

Wanda exclaimed in the softest tone she could when Loki flinched at the mere touch of the tip of her fingers against his face, as she tried to scan his face for the wound her father had caused when he had thrown him against that wall.

But that reaction caused Stephen and Tony's eyes to turn alertly toward the pair for the first time, something the asgardian could sense, so he simply shook his head, raising his gaze to meet the green eyes of his beloved standing before him.

"I'm fine," he murmured, nodding, "how are you? How are you feeling? Is there any way we can make sure the babies are okay?"

"She's right," Stephen intervened, approaching them after remaining at his husband's side, "we must make sure they're okay. The hits we—

Wanda was quick to shake her head, "I'm truly fine, and if you're okay, then we don't have time to waste..." she said, turning to Loki, "I need you to tell us exactly what is it that Mordo wants."

And it was then that the gazes of the blonde-haired asgardian, the super soldier, and the other sorcerer in the room turned to them, just as confused as the rest. Just as confused as Loki's. Wanda could see it in their eyes, so without hesitation she knelt down to be at his level, gently grabbing his hands.

"I know your mind is still a mess, and what I'm asking is very difficult, but please, please, I need you to focus and try to remember—

Loki's brow furrowed, as did the rest, unable to understand the certainty in the redhead's plea. A frown that faded slightly on the asgardian's face when the voice of his beloved inside his head, along with Mordo's in the depths of his mind, mingled, and he was able to remember that this wasn't the first time she had asked him that question. Although a part of him was still surprised by her. And it definitely wasn't the first time he remembered it.

And Wanda recognized the struggle he was having in his head just by looking into his eyes. One she knew he would have for a long time. One she sometimes still had when she tried to remember the months she spent under Mordo's spell. Trying to decipher what was real.

But Loki recognized it more easily, as he was the one who held tighlty onto her hands this time, "he knew that when we went to Asgard, he would have no way of reaching you and would lose his treasures forever. That's why he cast his spell on me. He wanted me to be the one to deliver them to him once they were born."

And all it took was for Wanda to hear that to suddenly let go of her lover's hands, standing up abruptly, just as Natasha had done.

"Wait a minute, does he know about babies?"