Trickster Gone Soft [Completed]

Plan of action

Hey guys! I'm back..tell me what you think! Thanks! :p

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It was currently evening and had been two hours since Loki's encounter with Carene. He now had a new mission in mind. 'Befriending Carene and discovering her secrets'. And since that mission required him to stay put at the camp, he had decided to get comfortable there (as comfortable as possible atleast). He had asked one of the volunteers for clothes and food which he had been given. He was currently sitting on one of the benches inside the camp out of lack of anything better to do.

He was looking around at all the destruction that had been brought about by the earthquake, the many people who were injured, families that had been separated, children crying and elders trying to passify them, people who were still in shock because of having lost someone very dear to them. The cramped spaces, the littered belongings, the chaos....

It could be a never ending list. It was all so pointless! Human lives were like dust. They were nothing. They were here one day and gone the next. And even then they lived with hope, trying their best to cope with their own losses and helping where they could. As if they could make a difference! It was so pathetic. They were fighting a battle already lost. They were holding on to a lie.

He too had believed in a lie for far too long. He had believed that he belonged with the Asgardians, belonged by his brothers side, belonged in his mother's arms. He had believed that his father loved both him and Thor equally. Loki knew deep down that Odin was proud of Thor in a way he would never be of him. He had never been that foolish to think otherwise. But he had believed that if he tried hard enough, Odin would one day notice him, and be proud of him too. That he would then be considered Thor's equal.

But that day had never come. And all of his hopes and dreams had been shattered when he had realised that Odin had never loved him because he was a frost giant. He would never be proud of him, would never accept him because he did not belong to him. Loki didn't belong with any of them. He was a stolen relic, a monster and no matter how hard he tried, that was who he always would be.

And now that he knew of his true lineage, he was simply living up to it. Now that he knew what Odin really thought of him, he was going to deliver. No more was he going to be fooled. He was going to inflict pain and suffering just like what had been done to him. The people of this realm would then bow down to him. He would be king like he was always meant to be. He would be worshipped and he would have all the power he craved for. No more would he have to live in Thor's shadow. He would be respected. People would fear him and cower in his presence. And he wanted just that!

"A penny for your thoughts?"

Loki returned to reality and glancing in the direction of the voice, he saw Carene sitting next to him, a friendly distance between them.

"Not many people have been able to sneak up on me" said he.

Carene grinned at him but shook her head, "It was completely unintentional. I guess you were just lost in thought. What were you thinking about?"

"I was thinking about you..", he lied smoothly and gave her his brightest smile. He had expected her to blush and start giggling at this.

Instead she just raised an eyebrow, and a challenging smile on her lips almost as though she could see through his lies. But how could she, no one could!

"Oh, really?", replied she playing along. She shifted closer to him confidently and leaned her elbow on the back of the bench, while turning towards him.

"And what about me were you thinking?" she asked. Her tone of voice and expression clearly suggesting that she knew what he was trying to do.

Loki hesitated just a little bit. He knew that Carene wasn't a naive woman and winning her trust wasn't going to be easy. He decided to try harder still. He had to be atleast a little bit convincing so he decided to mix maybe just a little bit of the truth.

He looked into her eyes and whispered quietly "I was admiring your will to help, to make a difference. A beautiful woman like you could easily use her charms to earn money but you choose not to"

This time Carene did giggle- correction- she began to laugh- she laughed her heart out.

"Darling, are you trying to tell me to become a prostitute?" She asked after she considerably quietened down.

At first Loki had been confused as to what he had said that Carene found so funny. But when he managed to make sense of what she said, he was thoroughly amused. Not only was Carene refusing to be bought by his attentions but she was also extremely witty. Witty comebacks had always been Loki's speciality. Perhaps she would be someone who could equal him.

"Hello? Lesley?", Carene was staring at Loki grinning widely.

"Zoned out again?"

"No. I..uh.." so he was a stuttering idiot now?? No one made Loki stutter. He was the God of mischievous, for the allfather's sake! He had to gain control. He had a reputation to maintain.

"I didn't mean it like that darling. If I offended you, it was completely unintentional", he said regaining his composure and matching her playful tone, pretty happy with himself now.

He saw Carene's eyes sparkle and she grinned at him again.

"I know you didn't Lesley. Although I'll give you a heads-up: flattery won't get you anywhere"

"What will?", he asked, his tone serious now, because he really had to know. His plan on taking over this realm would be brought to a stand-still otherwise.

She noted the genuine seriousness in his voice. And here she made her first mistake. She mistook it for being there 'cause he really wanted her friendship. Even now she didn't trust him. But she decided to give him a chance.

She looked into his eyes when she spoke. The playfulness gone from her voice.
"Help me. Help us.", she said.
"If you genuinely care, lend a hand. And we'll see what happens. We need to rebuild. We need to take care of the children, the elderly. We need to bring food and water. There's much to do and we could use all the help we can get. You in?"

"Ofcourse. Anything to gain your friendship." And Loki smiled brightly once again, internally being very pleased with himself. She had let him in. Now he had to work his way through to her heart and win her affection and trust.

She simply roles her eyes at his comment, even though she was smiling as she got up and left.

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Uh-oh! Carene NO! Now what?
Btw who enjoyed seeing Loki flirt? (Lol)
Anyway vote and comment people. And tell me what you think of the story this far. Next part coming up in a few days.