Broken

Three Months later

"Emilie Balke?"

"Coming!" I called, throwing on a dress and rushing to the front door where a man was standing. He smiled and introduced himself as Tony Stark. 

"Like, IronMan Tony Stark?" I gasped, reaching out and tapping his chest. Sure enough, my fingertips hit metal underneath his shirt.

"Yes. I have been sent by Nick Fury. We'd like to recruit you to join SHIELD."

I stared at him. "Why- I have no superpowers."

Tony stepped into the house and sat down in an armchair. I sank down opposite him.

"Look, sweetheart, you can feel emotions AND gather the truth about someone by asking questions. That's a superpower we can put to use."

"What would you want me to do?" I asked, feeling a little light-headed. I had all but convinced myself those Gods had been dreamed up, and here I was, talking to Iron Man. 

He leaned forward. "I know you have already met an Avenger, not personally, but from a distance. Thor, God of Thunder. And his brother and father, Loki and Odin. Are you familiar with these names?"

I nodded.

"Good, because you will know Loki's tendency to get into trouble. He betrayed his brother twice in the last three months and is under constant surveillance. However, none of our agents can get close to him, so we thought your power would be helpful in understanding his motives."

"So you want me to pay him a visit?" I asked, feeling rather flattered. Iron Man shook his head.

"We actually wanted you to take him for a period of time. Next week, in fact. For how long is unknown. I'll provide you with technology to protect yourself if worse comes to worst. Any questions, queries or concerns?"

I stared at him. This was entirely unexpected. 

"None? Are you willing?"

I nodded, slowly.

"I can take him, I suppose. Would I get pay?"

"Yes, of course. I'll send some agents to deck out your house with self-defense mechanisms and show you how to use an obedience disk. Hopefully, you won't need to use it but Reindeer Games can't be trusted."

I nodded and with that, Iron Man left the house.

 That week three SHIELD agents turned up and decked out the house with electric shock triggers, restraints, and invisible force fields- and the coolest part was they could only be triggered by me. I was given the remote for the obedience disk, which was implanted in Loki's neck, and if he tried to run or hurt me I could electrocute him. It was exciting and terrifying at the same time.

Monday rolled around and I did a final check of the house. I'd decked out the guest suite with flowers, towels and a drinks dispenser, and some casual clothes, all green and black. There was no lock on the door but there WAS a flip sign that read 'decent' and 'not decent'. 

The final defense structure was an anti-magic spell on Loki's suite that blocked his magic, and I felt safe in the knowledge that he couldn't brew up a potion or a plot to take over the world when I wasn't watching.

There was a knock on the door.

"Coming!" I called, hastening to the door. I straightened my dress and brushed my long brown hair out of my grey-blue eyes.

I opened the door.

"Hey, Tony."

"Hey, Emilie, this is Loki."