Unexpected

Room Service

My eyebrows flew up in surprise at Eric's words. In return he gave me another odd look. "You didn't know about that?"

"No. In the going over of my duties, Barton seems to have skipped over the whole room service thing." I answered, sounding a bit flustered. The last thing I wanted to do was draw Loki's attention to myself, since in a way I had rebelled against him by not being able to be controlled by his scepter, and now I was going to go strolling up to him with a platter of food!

"When you bring him his meal, knock on the door before entering, then wait for an answer. If he doesn't respond knock again, and if he doesn't answer back again you can go in, because he's probably not there and just put the food on a table or something. If he does answer and let you in, you go in, if he says go away you come back at a later time." Eric explained to me, since Barton hadn't last night.

"I don't even know where his room is." I sighed looking at Eric helplessly.

He merely grinned in return, "Oh, well I can help you there too. Once you leave the kitchen turn right until you pass two more intersections. At the second there are several halls of bedrooms and barrack type things. At the very end of the right hallway is Loki's room." I tried to commit this to memory as Eric gave me the directions. "Hope that helped! I gotta eat so I can get back to work."

He then left me to go to one of the tables while I mulled over this new bit of my job. My heart raced each time I thought of going up to Loki's door, of facing him again as I whipped up another round of each of the food items to fill the heaters. Then I searched through the drawers and cupboards for something for me to carry Loki's food on that would keep it hot. Finally I found a covered tray with handles. Unsure of how much Loki ate, as far as I could tell he came from a portal to the other side of space so he was an alien and yet he was also an old Norse god from legends, I scooped him a mighty serving of eggs and bacon and sliced several pieces of toast into triangle halves. Realizing that I didn't know what he liked to drink or what he liked on toast, if he liked toast at all, I scooped up several samplings of jams, butter, and the like, along with a glass each of orange juice, apple juice, milk, and water.

Placing the cover on the tray, I retrieved my phone from the back of the kitchen, turned off the music, and put it in my pocket. I then undid my side braid, which had become rather messy over cooking breakfast, and neatly retied it. If I was going to face Loki again, I wasn't going to face him like I had before, all dirty, messy, and fearful. I was going to look somewhat put together. Taking a deep breath, I contemplated the covered tray, hesitating before picking it up by its handles and leaving the kitchen.

My gait was steady as I made my way through the hallways, following the directions Selvig had given me, yet it was slow. It seemed all I could do to put one foot in front of the other as I passed blue eyed mind control victims as I walked through the hall. Finally I came to the hallways of bedrooms and I took a right, following the long, straight hallway until I reached the end where a door, identical to all the others stood. It was not the same as the other doors though. The other ones belonged to the controlled, while this one possibly had the controller waiting behind it, unless of course he was out and about in his underground headquarters. Shifting the tray onto one hand I lifted the other. My fist sat there in the air for a minute as I took deep breathes, trying to steady my pumping heart and gather up my courage. Hesitating, I knocked my fist against the door, the first one weak enough to barely be heard, then the following ones were stronger, though not impatient or demanding, just a sign of my presence at the door.

I then waited in tangible silence, hoping that he wasn't inside. I was about to lift my hand again to knock for the second time when I heard a bored sounding, "Enter." Come from inside the room.