Doesn't Play Well With Tricksters

18 - Another Curse

Rachael was sitting in the Lounge, quietly enjoying one of the books Loki recommended, when he rushed through the door, grabbing her by the throat and slamming her against the far wall. "How dare you!" He glared into her shocked face, his eyes glowing orange as his hand squeezed tighter.

She gasped for air, struggling to loosen his grasp.

"Who do you think you are?" He growled in her face. "You're nothing. A human, born to this weak, pathetic world and you are every bit as pathetic as it is."

Something in her snapped. Instead of clawing at his hand, she wrapped her hands around his neck, squeezing with all her strength even as her vision was turning dark. How dare he touch her? After the atrocities he'd committed. After the sheer number of lives he'd taken.

Thor lumbered into the room, breaking them apart and flinging his brother to the opposite side of the room. He helped Rachael up, keeping a wary eye on his brother. "What happened?" He asked.

Rodgers, Natasha, and Stark rushed in while Rachael was relaying her side of the story. "I really don't know." She finished, shrugging a shoulder.

"I would have killed the worthless-" his threat was broken off by Stark, who refused to let Loki close to her again.

Surprisingly, it was Natasha who spoke up in his defense. "New magic threat we didn't see coming. Apparently, rage is the new go-to curse."

"Thor," Rachael asked, rubbing her throat while she watched Loki struggle against his captors. "We're going to need those Asgardian handcuffs and a sturdy chair."

---

Twenty minutes later, Rachael was still pacing back and forth in front of Loki. With his hands cuffed securely behind him, and a length of chain keeping him in the chair, he couldn't do much other than glare at her as she moved from one side of the room to the other.

He'd strained against the restraints at first, but quickly learned he couldn't break free no matter how much he wanted to.

"Are you sure?" Natasha asked.

"He can't get free. You've been out all day. Go shower, get something to eat, relax for a while. If I come up with anything, I'll let you know."

He waited until everyone left before he started talking. "Well, aren't you the arrogant one? You know as soon as I get free, my hands will be back around that pretty little neck of yours."

She turned toward him. "Why?"

He sneered. "You think I need a reason?"

She gave him the most sugary-sweet smile she could muster. "Of course. Why would someone as big and important as you waste his time on someone as insignificant as me unless there was a reason?"

His eyes flashed back to their normal, blue-green color for the briefest of moments.

"You are nothing. Just a distraction keeping me from fulfilling my true purpose."

An idea, somewhere between crazy and suicidal, entered her mind. "You know," she lowered her eyes and clasped her hands loosely in front of her, acting as if his words had hurt her. "You're right. I could never be anything but a hindrance to you." She took a few cautious steps toward him, keeping her eyes lowered so he couldn't read anything in them.

"You're too frail, too weak to be anything else."

She raised her eyes to his as his feet came within her field of vision. "Strange thing, though." She settled herself on his lap, straddling his legs. "When that curse that's talking through you right now was in my head, it said all kinds of things." She laced her fingers through his hair, letting the silken strands slide through her fingers. "All of them with a grain of truth, I might add, but none of them the whole truth."

He growled at her, trying to buck her off his lap.

"Said you were nothing but a liar, and a murderer." She tugged on his hair, holding him still so she could clearly see his eyes. "I think it's not rage you're feeling, not entirely, anyway. I think the curse was designed to play on your worries." She smiled as the alien color started to fade from his eyes. "There is a definite difference between us. I am human. You're a frost giant, raised in the golden palace of Asgard. Could we be any more different?"

"Your life is fleeting. A mere blink of an eye." He answered, the glow almost gone from his eyes.

She released his hair and leaned her forehead against his. "True. But there's no telling when any of us will meet our end, so to speak. We put ourselves in danger every day. Any of us could die tomorrow. You included. More you, actually since you've made so many enemies the past few years. I could very well outlive you."

He smirked, the last of the fog gone from his eyes. "That is a distinct possibility."

"You okay now?"

"That depends," he answered. "What are you willing to do if I say no?"

She laughed. "You're incorrigible."

"Well, I am the God of mischief. Kind of a part of the deal." His gaze drifted down to her mouth. "Mischievous. Tricky. Silver tongued."

She leaned back just enough to keep a small amount of space between them as he tried to press his lips to hers. After several attempts, he groaned. "Tease."

"Keep up with the name calling and I'll leave you in these handcuffs." She threatened.

"That could be fun."