Lick Your Wounds, 4/5. NC-17. Loki/Natasha.
Title: Lick Your Wounds
Series: #6 in Ready For The Siege
(#1 - Look Over Your Shoulder, #2 - Armed Up To The Teeth, #3 - Misery Inspires, #4 - Broken Underneath, #5 - Change Is Coming Soon)
Author: Eustacia Vye
Author's e-mail: eustacia_vye28@hotmail.com
Rating: NC-17
Pairing: Loki/Natasha
Disclaimer: Not mine! Dubcon, violence, dom/sub dynamics, aftercare, and a lot of emotional manipulation ahead! Some comic backstory is incorporated into characterizations, but this is still primarily movieverse.
Spoilers/Warnings: Post-movie. Read the other stories before this one, because it does refer back to some events in them, especially #4 and #5.
Title and series title from "The Royal We" by Silversun Pickups
Summary: Loki is angry. However, he doesn't react in quite the way that anyone else had thought he would, least of all himself.
Prior chapters:
One - Unexpected Return
Two - Striking A Bargain
Three - Choose Wisely
Four - Nest of Lies
Natasha was in the bathroom of her hotel room, her violet dress clinging to her body like a second skin. Mascara was done, and she was in the process of applying the bright red lipstick when she saw the shimmer of air in the room behind her through the mirror. She turned, immediately taking stock of the situation. A curling iron wasn't much of a weapon, but it was still hot from creating waves in her hair, so that would have to do.
Loki stepped out of the portal in full regalia, woven leather armor and embossed gold accents in place. He was visibly agitated, lips drawn back and eyes flashing. "Natasha," he snarled, though she could somehow tell that his anger wasn't directed explicitly at her.
"Now is not a good time. I'm working, Loki," she said, turning back to her reflection in the mirror. He stalked toward her as she put on the lipstick. Capping the tube, she at least appeared to be nonchalant. "What is it?"
"Now it's my turn," he said, voice like a whip crack in the otherwise silent room. "Our deal, Natasha," he clarified at her impassive visage. "You've played your little games on my person, now I get to play."
"We don't have an arranged meeting time," she told him, turning partway toward him. "I'm not Natasha here, and I can't do this right now."
"I'll stop time," he snarled, fists clenched at his sides. "I'll take you out of its flow and reinsert you precisely back where you are."
"You don't do this," she hissed in return, stepping forward despite his looming stance. She thrust her jaw out stubbornly. "This isn't our deal."
Loki all but roared at her. "It has to be now!"
"Not everything is about you!" she snapped, irritated. "I have a job to do, Loki. People are relying on me to keep my word and do what has to be done. I don't have time for this now!"
He grabbed hold of her arm, and Natasha was almost surprised that his magic wasn't scalding hot enough to burn her again. Teeth grit as if to keep from screaming, Loki looked at her in near desperation. It made Natasha wonder how she ever thought him inscrutable. "After earlier... You don't know... I need this. I came directly to you. I didn't even think, I came here. You tell me now you don't have time for me?"
She had no idea what he was talking about, as she had been in deep cover for almost a month. He was admitting this much, which had to be cataclysmic. What would he do if she turned him loose? How many untold lives would be lost if he couldn't control his immense temper?
"I'm on a job, Loki. I can't just walk away, no matter how much I might want to."
There. That had to be something to assuage his ego while still maintaining a limit. If she gave in too easily, he would never respect her further. She wouldn't be able to dominate him or give him the release he needed. She needed to be in control, or at least have the appearance of it.
"I'll take you out of time, Natasha. I've done it before for less."
Pretending to ponder that, she finally nodded. "Fine, then."
She could feel something like static on her skin, and then everything around her seemed to shift in coloration somehow. Was this what magic looked like?
Loki grasped her arm, and she let go of her lipstick. Distantly, she heard it clatter into the sink as he pulled her from the bathroom. Her dress loosened and fell from her body, leaving her in nothing but black lace panties and a garter belt holding up thigh high stockings. She stepped over the puddle of violet silk on the floor, eyes locked on Loki's. Something flickered in his gaze besides anger and a hungry lust for her body. She couldn't identify it, but it didn't scare her in the slightest. Whatever it was, Loki wouldn't harm her.
"I need you to kneel," he said, hunger in his voice.
Not breaking eye contact, Natasha gracefully dropped to her knees. The eye contact could be seen as a challenge or act of aggression, but Loki licked his lower lip and unbuckled his gold vambraces slowly. She stayed silent, hands clasped behind her, watching him closely as he removed his chest plate and loosened the straps that held his leather armor in place. His movements were deliberate and precise, meant to draw out any potential worry she might have had. This was a game, one where he had to feel important and masterful, especially after whatever had happened earlier. Perhaps it was meeting with Odin or Thor. Perhaps Sif or the Warriors Three arrived and threatened him. It really didn't matter who it was or what the outcome was; he felt small and powerless, and he needed this to feel whole again.
She opened her mouth wide to take in his cock when the rest of his clothes disappeared. Loki grasped the back of her head tightly, and Natasha appreciated that he didn't simply mash her face into his crotch. He held her firmly in place as she worked her tongue along his length, coaxing it to fullness. Loki's breath hitched a little, and Natasha could see his eyes grow dark with desire as he watched her mouth bob over him. Swirling her tongue around in circles made his fingers twitch at the back of her head, but he still didn't cut off her breathing. Thoughtful, which wasn't what she expected of him in this state.
He fucked her mouth, breath stuttering in his chest as he watched her. Natasha couldn't quite guess at his thoughts, but there seemed to be an air of desperate loneliness about him. He was upset, and the first place he had gone was to her side.
Her plan had worked, but to what end? What would be her endgame?
Natasha swallowed when he came, sucking and licking gently to bring him down from the edge. He gave a shuddering groan as he cradled her skull in his hands, staring at her as if he could figure out her thoughts. That he still tried meant that he couldn't, that there wasn't a spell for telepathy or clairvoyance. Just as well; he wouldn't take it well if he thought she was playing him like a fine instrument.
When Loki wrenched himself away from her, she almost expected a caustic comment. Instead, he took a steadying breath and then grasped her by the throat. Suppressing her instinct to fight back, Natasha kept her hands loosely clasped behind her back. He lifted her to her feet easily, then a little higher so that her toes barely touched the floor when she arched her feet. Neither said a word, as if voices would break the spell.
Depositing her on the bed, Natasha wriggled a bit to get comfortable. Lying on her back, her legs fell over the side. Loki pushed them wide, eyes dropping from hers to take in the scrap of black lace covering her red curls. He pulled them off of her, ripping the lace and discarding it without another glance. Crashing to his knees in front of her, he surged forward to mouth at her flesh. She reached down to him, but the moment her fingers brushed against his dark hair, he looked up at her with flashing eyes. Magic pressed against her, holding her wrists down on either side of her head, a ghostly hand circling her throat. It didn't press, but felt almost like a choker. A pair moved up along her abdomen until they could cup her bare breasts, and then Loki bent down to lick at her clit. His hands held her hips almost tight enough to bruise, keeping her from moving too much. Natasha let her breathing grow harsh and loud; usually she was very quiet.
He brought her to the brink of orgasm, then pulled away. Whimpering, she looked down to see what he was doing. Loki smirked as he roughly repositioned her on her hands and knees. The magic hands were still on her, one pair cupping and pinching her nipples while another simply held her throat. "I want to hear you," he growled, a thread of menace in his tone. He thrust deep inside of her, making Natasha cry out. "Yes," he growled, fingers digging deeply into the flesh of her hips as he held her. "Just like that."
Her fingers scrabbled for some kind of purchase against the soft sheets as he fucked her hard and fast. She moaned and made mewling sounds, forcing herself to be louder than she normally would be. He groaned, pleased with the sounds, and another ghostly hand dipped between her legs to rub her clit. Natasha nearly wailed at the contact, muffling the sound by pressing her face into the sheets. "No," Loki roared, displeased, and another magical hand yanked back on her hair. The hand at her throat tightened and the pair at her breasts pinched painfully. She yelped more in surprise than pain, but it apparently assuaged his ego. The pain lessened, and he resumed his punishing pace. Pleasure still shot through her with each thrust, until she came with a hoarse cry, fingers pulling at the sheets as she tried to writhe and arch her back.
Loki pulled out of her abruptly, and Natasha made a disappointed sound. He turned her over and spread her legs wide, stepping into the space between them. The expression on his face was intent and intense, fixated on her flushed cheeks and parted lips, makeup smeared across her face and the sheet beneath her. Lifting one leg to rest against his chest, Loki guided his cock into her and slid into her slicked sheath. He kept one hand curled around her knee, keeping that leg in place as he leaned forward. His other hand was at her hip. The conjured hands still held her down and teased her breasts and clit as he began to thrust into her. Natasha made mewling sounds of pleasure as she tried to tilt her hips. Loki leaned forward, changing the angle of his thrusts and nearly lifting her ass off of the bed as if he could fold her in half. Her mewls changed to deep, throaty moans, and Loki gave her a predatory smile in response.
The magic gave him an advantage in getting her overwhelmed by sensation, and Natasha pushed against the magic as best as she could. His smile grew into a manic grin as he felt her attempts to move, and he laughed. "You want this so badly, Natasha," he growled, everything in his posture screaming that he wanted to utterly possess her.
"God," she moaned, trying to arch her back. It wouldn't hurt to give him a little something.
That was just what he wanted to hear. Startled joy suffused his features, and the magic touches took on a less frantic aspect. Now they were more like caresses, and Loki leaned into her. His hand slid down her thigh to cup a breast tenderly. "I am your god, are I not?" he asked, voice thick with raw desire. He sounded on the verge of orgasm, so she clenched her inner muscles tight around his cock. She moaned again, hoping he would take that as assent, but it also felt good to have him thick and full inside of her. Natasha would never admit it, but she had actually missed his assaults on her senses.
Shuddering, Loki came, hips stuttering. He leaned into her heavily, and Natasha looked at him as she struggled to get her breathing under control. Laughing suddenly, he sounded utterly insane. He looked at her, lips stretched wide in that manic grin. "I should make you go to that party as you are now. Put on the dress, my seed on your thighs, my scent on your skin. They'll have to know you're mine, none of them can have you."
Natasha found that the ghostly hands were gone so she could move her arms, and she reached out to touch his cheek gently. "Is that what you really want, Loki?"
Her words were gentle, nonthreatening. But he pulled back sharply and let her leg drop to the bed, withdrawing from her body. "I could do that. I could make you."
"Or you could ask me," she said quietly, reaching for him. He let her take hold of his arm and pull him in closer to her as she sat up. "Is that what you want?"
Loki looked at her, expression shuttered. He grasped her face in his hands, eyes searching her gaze for something. "I've ruined your makeup."
"I can fix it. Most things can be fixed with enough time and effort."
The words were loaded, and they both knew it.
When he tried to pull away, she tightened her hold on his arm. They really should have some kind of safe word to end scenes, she realized. She wasn't sure if he still needed to be on his godly trip or if it was safe enough to react as she normally would. "Loki."
"You can clean up. You've said this is important to you." He sounded churlish, as if this concession had been dragged out of him rather than offered freely.
Godly trip continued, then. She pulled him down for a soft kiss. "If you command me to," she murmured against his mouth, "then I'll wash up and fix my makeup. But I won't put on any new perfume. I'll still smell like you."
It was apparently the right thing to say. Loki grasped her by the back of the head and kissed her passionately on the mouth, tongue sliding between her open lips. His other hand slid down her back, and he leaned forward, tilting her backward toward the bed. When he broke off the kiss to let her breathe, he fell to his knees and put his mouth to her swollen flesh. He licked and teased her wet folds, and Natasha gasped at the contact. Remembering he wanted to hear her, she made her moans a little too loud. Loki slid two fingers into her, curling them so that he could feel her slick sheath and give her something to clench down on. Natasha bucked her hips a little and arched her back, pulling at the sheet beneath her as she writhed beneath his mouth.
Loki continued until she came with a cry, gasping and moaning. He sat back, licking his lips with a pleased expression on his face. He stood and sat down on the bed beside her, then leaned over her splayed body. "I know you like this," he purred, sliding one hand down her belly. "Has anyone else ever touched you as I have?"
The truth would likely anger him, so she licked her dry lips. It distracted him a little, and Natasha reached out to trace the planes of his chest. "There hasn't been anyone else since you cornered me at my safe house."
That answer pleased him greatly, and she could practically see his chest puff up in pride. "So you're mine."
After driving everyone else away, it was obviously important that he could claim someone as his, someone that he could belong to. It would have been sad if she hadn't known that he had driven away those who cared for him in a deliberate manner, pushing all the buttons he knew would be the most painful. He had only himself to blame for his current situation, though he likely didn't have any conscious knowledge of his motives.
"We're still not in reality yet, are we?" Natasha asked, not touching the possessive statement. She doubted she had the energy to deal with all of his issues at this point.
"No," Loki said softly, hand still stroking her stomach. Natasha wasn't terribly fond of that look in his eye, as if he was plotting something else.
She reached up and traced the line of his jaw. "Good."
That gave him a jolt, and his lips twitched into the ghost of a pleased smile. "You will have to leave, however. You were most insistent."
"Yes. I've been tracking the funding and scientist recruitment patterns." She stretched, lips quirking when his eyes tracked the sinuous curves of her body. In some ways, he would always be predictable. Loki slid his hand down her stomach to curl his fingers between her legs, making her gasp. "Why? Did you want to come with me?"
His eyes glittered, the invitation pleasing him immensely. "Would it be appropriate?"
"SHIELD still has facial recognition software on the lookout for you."
"I could look like anyone you wished."
She reached for his face again, tracing the curve of his lips. "Could it be something that would fool others but not me? I'd prefer to see you as you are."
Oh, that certainly pleased Loki a lot. He damn near preened under her touch, fingers sliding between her slick folds to tease her slowly. "Are you going to attack anyone tonight?"
"Depends on the kind of after party I get invited to."
Loki's manic grin was back, and he started playing with her in earnest. "Is it inappropriate to bring a paramour with you?" He hovered over her body, and a magical hand cupped one of her breasts in a tender caress. "Would it not signal your superiors that something had gone wrong?"
"I've been in deep cover for a while now. It's my op." He didn't understand the lingo, so she clarified "It's my decision. Whatever gets the job done."
Slipping his fingers inside her, he curled them right into her G spot, making her moan and arch her back. It pressed her further into his magical touch, rubbing her other breast against the arm he was leaning on. The manic grin definitely had a possessive cast to it. "Excellent."
After he teased her into another orgasm, he gently picked her up in his arms. It was a move that surprised her; she would have thought that he would let her wobble her way to the bathroom. She was cleaned up with a wave of his hand, the smears of makeup gone entirely and the stickiness between her thighs removed. He watched her intently as she reapplied her eye shadow and mascara, a faint tint of blush and then the impossibly red lipstick again. Loki slid his hand down the curve of her back as she curled her hair again, painstakingly arranging curls artfully around her face, leaving a few loose. Before she could even retrieve her discarded panties and dress, Loki snapped his fingers and they were back in place.
Natasha looked at him in amusement. "Handy trick you have there."
"What use is a skill if it cannot be used to my benefit?" He was instantly dressed in a black tuxedo with forest green cummerbund and bow tie, his hair slicked back from his face. Sliding an arm around her waist, he pulled her flush against his body. "I intrigue you, Natasha."
He wasn't using that insipid nickname of little spider even when he could. This had to be progress of a sort. She allowed a soft, secretive smile to curl her lips. "Perhaps. It's fair to say that I intrigue you as well."
"A matched pair of liars?" he asked sardonically.
"Somewhere within the nest of lies is a grain of truth. The challenge is to find it."
Loki's grin was a baring of teeth. "Challenge accepted."
***
Loki accompanied Natasha to a fancy dinner party in a lavish resort high in the Pyrenees Mountains. On the way, she had briefly summarized what was going on so that he wouldn't blow her cover. As the heiress Emilie Turpin, Natasha supposedly had come to Andorra to evaluate a winter estate and see about investing money in a local company to help with the economy. The tiny country had been a tax haven in the EU until recently, but now there were business taxes, sales taxes and even an income tax. Still, AIM had already set up a lab in the area under the guise of research into hydroelectric power, pharmaceuticals and theoretical robotics.
"How terribly banal," Loki scoffed. He had applied a glamour so that he appeared bland and forgettable, and Natasha missed his smirks. "Your skills are wasted here."
Natasha flashed him a smile that was insufferably charming and innocent. "Darling Lucas," she said, French accent to her words. "Whatever do you mean? Maman had such love for her homeland, I simply had to see if I can honor her memory."
He laughed as they entered the ballroom. She had fallen into her role so seamlessly, all intents and purposes becoming Emilie. It was obvious that she had grabbed Loki's attention, and he really had no idea how she usually operated for SHIELD. He had fought her and had chased away Hydra informants, but he had never seen her in her element.
It ought to be an interesting evening.
The new director for AIM in Killian's wake was Ekaterina Sarkissian, who had been the company's CFO while Killian was alive. She expanded the company's R&D division, hoping to change its perception in the media, claiming that all of the difficulty with Extremis was due to Killian's single-minded and solitary drive to experiment before the formula was ready. SHIELD suspected that she was working with Project Centipede, but there was no proof of that. They were still at least three or four steps behind that group, so Natasha was directed to work the financial angle. She would be able to tell where to go from there; either project needed millions in funding to survive and expand its research.
Loki quickly grew bored with the small talk and insipid attempts of various businessmen to flirt with Emilie once it was determined that Lucas was a close family friend but not a lover. Natasha managed to smile and nod, gradually drawing out which of the potential suitors were investors in Sarkissian's AIM. One finally was useful and introduced her to Sarkissian. Natasha pasted her most vapid expression on her face as Emilie, but there was something nagging at her as she met Sarkissian. The woman was familiar somehow, though Natasha knew for a fact that they had never met before. She could place Sarkissian from the Moscow area by her accent and the cadence of her speech, but she knew that Sarkissian wasn't affiliated with the Red Room Academy. None of the old teachers there had survived; it had been one of the first things she had done when she turned mercenary.
"You're thinking of something," Loki murmured to Natasha when Sarkissian moved to charm someone else out of millions. "I can tell that much."
"That's rather the point, Lucas," Emilie said with a bright smile. "I'm thinking that technology should have a good enough future to make it a worthwhile investment. Why, Monsieur Lafitte seems to have excellent returns." There was a devilish spark in Natasha's eyes as she let Loki hand her a glass of champagne. "Of course, having the same name as a legendary pirate likely has nothing to do with such matters."
He smiled, following her lead on this. Natasha was grateful that he wasn't ruining the chance to meet with Sarkissian in person and try to find the financial trails. "Should I be of further assistance with your work, then?"
"Oh? Could you do such a thing?"
"You'd be surprised by the things I can choose to do."
"I'm sure," Natasha replied, lips curling into a secretive smile. "As you've said, there is endless fascination in this endeavor."
"For example," Loki said quietly, pressing a cell phone into Natasha's hand. "This could appear for you to look at, and I can replace it before she even knows it's missing."
Handing her glass of champagne to Loki to hold, Natasha swiped the touchscreen to activate it. No password, how trusting. She kept her social smile in place as she went through the contact list and calendar application.
Not only were there known AIM agents in her phone, but there were a number of high ranking Hydra officials, including Ophelia Sarkissian.
She passed the phone back to Loki and retrieved the glass of champagne. "This just got a lot more interesting, thank you."
Loki arched an eyebrow at her as the phone disappeared from his hand. "You're welcome. Now what will you do?"
"Same as the original plan, just more background research."
"Sounds dull."
Natasha smiled widely. "Not always."
While the party was still in full swing, Natasha exited and headed directly for the suite that had been registered in Ekaterina Sarkissian's name. Picking the lock with two hairpins would have taken her a few minutes, but Natasha merely gestured toward it. "Want to do the honors?"
Loki didn't look amused, and merely opened the door. The lock snapped open, and they strolled inside the suite. Natasha began to systematically go through all of Ekaterina's belongings, including her portfolio and briefcase. Most of it was fairly standard financial documents for a technology company and think tank, but the numbers didn't quite add up, especially after Emilie's fawning suitors constantly stated that AIM was so good on their returns. "This bores me," Loki declared after about ten minutes. "This isn't terribly exciting."
"I never promised exciting," Natasha reminded him.
He blew out an irritated breath. "No, you did not," he agreed softly. "This is tedious."
"Such is what I normally do for a living."
Natasha removed one of the jewels from her hair clip and peeled away one side of the backing. She pressed the small black circle into the portfolio binding, making sure it blended in with the stitching. Another part of the backing went into the briefcase lining. Loki merely watched her move around the room, arms crossed over his chest as he contemplated her movements. "You are comfortable this way."
Replacing the jewel in her hair clip, Natasha shrugged. "I have more to research tonight. Time to head out."
Stalking forward, Loki let his fingertips run down her arms. "And if I wish you to put that off?"
"You promised."
He spun away from her and opened the door to the suite. "I suppose I did not think you valued this," he admitted finally.
"And now that you know I do?"
Loki turned back to face her. "It could be a mistake, revealing a weakness to me. I know too much about you already."
"As I know you," Natasha replied evenly
At an impasse, Loki let out a slow breath, then crooked his arm in a gallant manner. "You have work to do, dear one. Time to go."
Not sure where he was going with this, Natasha still nodded at him. "Yes, let's go."
***
The party was just as deadly dull as earlier, but Sarkissian seemed to be looking at Natasha with suspicion. Loki saw it before she did, mostly because she was gathering further information and didn't have his enhanced senses. "Her cover is too perfect," Sarkissian was telling the man at her side, voice low and angry. Loki withdrew from Natasha's side and headed toward the restroom he had passed on his way back to the ballroom. Gathering a cloak of shadows around himself, Loki slid back into the ballroom and headed for Sarkissian. She was speaking rapidly in Russian now, which Natasha would have had no trouble understanding. It was a thought to translate it to the Alltongue with a spell, and Loki quickly gathered that she was contacting her cousin Ophelia at Hydra. She wanted access to the Clairvoyant now, and wouldn't do any further work on the nanobots that Ophelia wanted until she was sure it was safe.
Oh, no, that wouldn't do at all. This had to be the sort of thing that Natasha wanted. And if she got it, he would have her all to himself that much sooner. Yes, that was all he cared for. It had nothing to do with how pleased she would be, or how well she might reward him.
Loki extended his will and froze time at the party as soon as Sarkissian ended her phone call. He strode to Natasha's side and freed her from his spell. "She contacted her cousin at Hydra," he told her without preamble. "She mentioned a clairvoyant and nanobots, then a flash drive with schematics that she has hidden until Ophelia gives her what she wants."
Natasha frowned. "It wasn't in her suite, and the tracking devices won't give me a clue. It must be on her right now."
She had no compunction about raiding the woman's purse or checking her dress for hidden pockets in the lining. Loki raised an eyebrow at the thorough search, and nearly laughed when she retrieved the flash drive. "Clever female."
"You have to use what you have," Natasha said with a shrug. "How long can you use this spell?"
"I only extended it to this ballroom. The rest of the world still moves normally."
"This could be a problem if someone was expecting-"
Before she could finish her thought, the doors to the ballroom opened. The first man through the door froze in place as the time spell hit him, but the men behind him were still alert and aware. Two ran off shouting in Spanish.
"Well, there goes that idea," Natasha said, as if she had been able to outline a plan after all. Loki found it amazing that she was so calm. Moving to a table, she took a pen and quickly jotted a series of numbers and directions onto one of the linen napkins. She wrapped it around the flash drive and pressed it into Loki's hand. "You're going to need to go to Clint Barton and give this to him. He knows where I was headed, and he'll pass this along to the necessary people."
"You expect me to leave you here?"
"I expect you to let me do my job," she said, voice icy. Ah, there was the cruel edge to her, the one that was all business and no emotion. "They expect that someone did this to the room, so someone will have to stay."
"I can send you to Barton-"
"My op, my rules," she said shortly. "I know the hotel schematics, and Emilie has to be here or else Sarkissian really has something to suspect. You, on the other hand, already stepped out of the room a few minutes ago. You can go and come back."
It made sense, but Loki didn't want to respond to logic. He wanted her safe, and he wasn't about to look at that impulse too closely. "If they kill you..."
"They wouldn't be able to target me if they don't know I'm the target. We're wasting time," she hissed, striding back to the knot of men she had been speaking with earlier. "Just go, and make sure that they get that information."
"Natasha..."
"The mission is a failure if that data isn't delivered to SHIELD. That's more important right now. I can take care of myself. I don't need an extraction plan."
He had no idea what she was saying, but the gist of it was clear. "I can't leave you," he hissed, coming back to her side. Men had returned to the door, but they didn't know how to get in without getting frozen and didn't want to shoot into the frozen crowd. Loki could see that they were Sarkissian's men; each wore an AIM insignia on the lapel of their uniforms. "Not here, not like this. I can't."
"What will make you deliver that drive?" she asked, eyes flashing in anger.
She was beautiful, and he wanted to bed her immediately. "I need assurance you'll be safe."
Natasha rolled her eyes at him, but Loki couldn't even find it in him to be angry with the disrespectful behavior. "I'll be fine. Drop your spell, and you'll see."
Loki rendered himself invisible before doing just that. Natasha seamlessly reintegrated herself into the inane conversation with the men around her, and he moved to see what Sarkissian was doing. Her men approached her warily, and reported the strange phenomenon. He didn't like the way she narrowed her eyes or told her men to search the entire hotel for a spell caster. She knew far too much about magic for his liking.
He stalked her as she met with her men and ordered more to scour the building. It felt as though his window for escaping detection was closing sharply, but he couldn't leave Natasha behind. He couldn't, even though she had all but ordered him to.
What had become of him?
Loki knew he should leave, deliver her message as she requested and disappear. She didn't need his help to escape. As a trained assassin, Natasha could very well take care of herself. That she could render him helpless and needy should have been proof enough of that.
"Get Turpin," Sarkissian said finally, just as Loki decided to teleport to Barton. "I know everyone else here. Let's see what the little bitch can tell me."
No! Loki's mind screamed. She's mine!
Emilie had a politely blank expression when one of Sarkissian's guards asked her to come with him for a meeting. "Oh? But I haven't even talked with my financial planner about investments yet. Isn't this a little soon?"
Fists curled at his sides, Loki watched as Natasha bid her companions farewell and went with the armed guard. "Where are we going?" she asked in Emilie's sweet voice. "Is there an office or something? Because I really don't know all the financial stuff."
The guard didn't say anything, but brought her to a room with two men and a chair. The guard locked the door behind them, and Loki had a sinking feeling in his gut. Natasha didn't have weapons. Not that she needed them, necessarily, he remembered full well how she was at hand to hand. But this would be three against one, and he itched to help her.
"So it's like that, is it?" she asked, lips quirking into a slight smile.
And then before Loki could open his mouth to speak, she moved. The guard behind her was first to be attacked; she spun around him and gave him a wicked shove toward the other two. None had their guns out, and Natasha pulled the pistol from the guard's holster as he stumbled past her. She got off three shots in quick succession, all head shots.
"You really should have left when I told you to," Natasha said with a sigh, looking unerringly at Loki. "I'm no damsel in distress."
"I should remember that," Loki said, grinning at her. "Yet for some reason I feel protective of you." He dropped his invisibility and walked to her side. "Sarkissian won't let you leave alive after this."
"I'll be able to get out."
He shouldn't doubt her. He knew this was true. But these pesky feelings were interfering with his cold logic and usual rage.
Natasha pulled him down for a kiss. "If it makes you feel better, give me another weapon," she said, lips tilting into a familiar, domineering smile.
As Natasha stripped the men of their weapons and threw a shoulder holster on over her dress to hold them, Loki opened a portal and removed one of his favorite swords. It was three quarter tang in length, with runes along its length. The hilt was richly ornamented with jewels, the guard elaborately wrought to be beautiful as well as functional. It also contained a hidden catch that would turn the sword into twin blades for a dual wielder. "Dwarven crafted, inscribed to retain its edge regardless of what it faces." Loki held it to her reverently.
Taking it with the respect the weapon deserved, Natasha balanced its heft with her right hand as she stowed the pistol in the holster with her left. Looking carefully at the hilt and guard, she easily found the catch and separated the sword. "I like it."
He watched her grasp each blade in one hand, her stance loose yet aggressive. It would be fascinating to spar with her when this was over; he no longer wanted to kill her or maim her, and he rather missed training. "Have a care with this sword. It doesn't function as well if one piece of it is missing."
Natasha gave him a knowing, seductive smile. "That, I can believe. Now go on. I'm a big girl, Loki. I'll cover your exit and eventually make my way back to New York."
"Is that a promise?" he asked, the words difficult to force past his throat.
"Absolutely," she replied without hesitation.
Not fond of goodbyes, he nodded at her sharply and opened a portal behind him. He knew the cadence of Barton's thoughts thanks to the Tesseract, and he didn't even look where the portal opened up. Natasha kicked the door open as Loki stepped backward, each half of his sword in each hand and the holster slung around her torso on top of the violet dress. Stalking forward, Loki lost sight of her as she entered the hallway, though he caught a flash of her smoothly swinging the swords in concert as his portal closed. It looked almost like a dancing prop, and he recalled her saying she had once been a wind-up ballerina. She couldn't use the Emilie Turpin persona after this night, but he doubted that she cared about it much. Even a month ago, he wouldn't have cared either.
Loki turned around and found Clint Barton, Tony Stark and Steve Rogers all in front of him with the appearance that they were ready to strike. "Natasha sends her regards," he said, holding out the napkin and flash drive. "She requested this be brought to you immediately for analysis," he added as he tossed them to Barton. Stark and Rogers looked at him with suspicion, but he let the emotion roll off of him. They didn't matter. They weren't important. Barton was the important one, as he was closest to Natasha. She cared for the others, but Loki knew that Barton was special even if he didn't share her bed.
I owe him a debt, she had said once, but Loki knew it was more than that. She did not hold onto ties easily. She knew how dangerous that could be, how vulnerable it would make her. While she was absolutely able to turn vulnerability into a strength, that didn't mean she wanted to expose herself needlessly.
"Where is she?" Rogers asked as Barton opened the knotted napkin.
"In Andorra," Loki and Barton said at once. Barton looked up in surprise, though he really shouldn't have. Loki had announced he was at her side. "She will make her way here," Loki drawled. "She promised."
Stark was staring at him for a moment. "So what's your deal?" he asked finally. Barton's hand was tight on the flash drive and napkin, his lips compressed into a thin, unhappy line. He knew how far Natasha was willing to go to complete a mission, and Loki was just starting to learn this. Hadn't he been a mission once upon a time? She had told him as much.
"She asked for a favor."
"It's her op," Barton told them, voice flat. Loki recognized the strained tone he used. "She'll do what it takes to finish it and get back."
"Meaning what? Are we supposed to deal with Loki?" Stark asked irritably as Rogers asked "Are you going to try to kill her again?"
He supposed his rages had been rather destructive. Mortals would not likely be very forgiving of that kind of behavior. Still, he didn't care for them or their concerns. Loki shrugged and gave them a magnanimous smile. "She and I have an arrangement. Never fear, your lives are spared. For now," he added for drama. For additional flair, he rendered himself invisible as well. It was difficult not to laugh at Stark's expression, his eyes wide and nearly frightened. Rogers was on alert, and would be one to keep an eye on.
Barton was looking right at him, but didn't say a word. Loki didn't want to be beholden to him, if he could actually see the trickster. He stepped sideways onto one of Yggdrasil's branches and let the portal close behind him.
Loki would see Natasha again soon enough. He had to believe in that. Unlike him, she always kept her promises, and never made any she didn't mean.
***
***
To Chapter Five - Resolution
Series: #6 in Ready For The Siege
(#1 - Look Over Your Shoulder, #2 - Armed Up To The Teeth, #3 - Misery Inspires, #4 - Broken Underneath, #5 - Change Is Coming Soon)
Author: Eustacia Vye
Author's e-mail: eustacia_vye28@hotmail.com
Rating: NC-17
Pairing: Loki/Natasha
Disclaimer: Not mine! Dubcon, violence, dom/sub dynamics, aftercare, and a lot of emotional manipulation ahead! Some comic backstory is incorporated into characterizations, but this is still primarily movieverse.
Spoilers/Warnings: Post-movie. Read the other stories before this one, because it does refer back to some events in them, especially #4 and #5.
Title and series title from "The Royal We" by Silversun Pickups
Summary: Loki is angry. However, he doesn't react in quite the way that anyone else had thought he would, least of all himself.
Prior chapters:
One - Unexpected Return
Two - Striking A Bargain
Three - Choose Wisely
Four - Nest of Lies
Natasha was in the bathroom of her hotel room, her violet dress clinging to her body like a second skin. Mascara was done, and she was in the process of applying the bright red lipstick when she saw the shimmer of air in the room behind her through the mirror. She turned, immediately taking stock of the situation. A curling iron wasn't much of a weapon, but it was still hot from creating waves in her hair, so that would have to do.
Loki stepped out of the portal in full regalia, woven leather armor and embossed gold accents in place. He was visibly agitated, lips drawn back and eyes flashing. "Natasha," he snarled, though she could somehow tell that his anger wasn't directed explicitly at her.
"Now is not a good time. I'm working, Loki," she said, turning back to her reflection in the mirror. He stalked toward her as she put on the lipstick. Capping the tube, she at least appeared to be nonchalant. "What is it?"
"Now it's my turn," he said, voice like a whip crack in the otherwise silent room. "Our deal, Natasha," he clarified at her impassive visage. "You've played your little games on my person, now I get to play."
"We don't have an arranged meeting time," she told him, turning partway toward him. "I'm not Natasha here, and I can't do this right now."
"I'll stop time," he snarled, fists clenched at his sides. "I'll take you out of its flow and reinsert you precisely back where you are."
"You don't do this," she hissed in return, stepping forward despite his looming stance. She thrust her jaw out stubbornly. "This isn't our deal."
Loki all but roared at her. "It has to be now!"
"Not everything is about you!" she snapped, irritated. "I have a job to do, Loki. People are relying on me to keep my word and do what has to be done. I don't have time for this now!"
He grabbed hold of her arm, and Natasha was almost surprised that his magic wasn't scalding hot enough to burn her again. Teeth grit as if to keep from screaming, Loki looked at her in near desperation. It made Natasha wonder how she ever thought him inscrutable. "After earlier... You don't know... I need this. I came directly to you. I didn't even think, I came here. You tell me now you don't have time for me?"
She had no idea what he was talking about, as she had been in deep cover for almost a month. He was admitting this much, which had to be cataclysmic. What would he do if she turned him loose? How many untold lives would be lost if he couldn't control his immense temper?
"I'm on a job, Loki. I can't just walk away, no matter how much I might want to."
There. That had to be something to assuage his ego while still maintaining a limit. If she gave in too easily, he would never respect her further. She wouldn't be able to dominate him or give him the release he needed. She needed to be in control, or at least have the appearance of it.
"I'll take you out of time, Natasha. I've done it before for less."
Pretending to ponder that, she finally nodded. "Fine, then."
She could feel something like static on her skin, and then everything around her seemed to shift in coloration somehow. Was this what magic looked like?
Loki grasped her arm, and she let go of her lipstick. Distantly, she heard it clatter into the sink as he pulled her from the bathroom. Her dress loosened and fell from her body, leaving her in nothing but black lace panties and a garter belt holding up thigh high stockings. She stepped over the puddle of violet silk on the floor, eyes locked on Loki's. Something flickered in his gaze besides anger and a hungry lust for her body. She couldn't identify it, but it didn't scare her in the slightest. Whatever it was, Loki wouldn't harm her.
"I need you to kneel," he said, hunger in his voice.
Not breaking eye contact, Natasha gracefully dropped to her knees. The eye contact could be seen as a challenge or act of aggression, but Loki licked his lower lip and unbuckled his gold vambraces slowly. She stayed silent, hands clasped behind her, watching him closely as he removed his chest plate and loosened the straps that held his leather armor in place. His movements were deliberate and precise, meant to draw out any potential worry she might have had. This was a game, one where he had to feel important and masterful, especially after whatever had happened earlier. Perhaps it was meeting with Odin or Thor. Perhaps Sif or the Warriors Three arrived and threatened him. It really didn't matter who it was or what the outcome was; he felt small and powerless, and he needed this to feel whole again.
She opened her mouth wide to take in his cock when the rest of his clothes disappeared. Loki grasped the back of her head tightly, and Natasha appreciated that he didn't simply mash her face into his crotch. He held her firmly in place as she worked her tongue along his length, coaxing it to fullness. Loki's breath hitched a little, and Natasha could see his eyes grow dark with desire as he watched her mouth bob over him. Swirling her tongue around in circles made his fingers twitch at the back of her head, but he still didn't cut off her breathing. Thoughtful, which wasn't what she expected of him in this state.
He fucked her mouth, breath stuttering in his chest as he watched her. Natasha couldn't quite guess at his thoughts, but there seemed to be an air of desperate loneliness about him. He was upset, and the first place he had gone was to her side.
Her plan had worked, but to what end? What would be her endgame?
Natasha swallowed when he came, sucking and licking gently to bring him down from the edge. He gave a shuddering groan as he cradled her skull in his hands, staring at her as if he could figure out her thoughts. That he still tried meant that he couldn't, that there wasn't a spell for telepathy or clairvoyance. Just as well; he wouldn't take it well if he thought she was playing him like a fine instrument.
When Loki wrenched himself away from her, she almost expected a caustic comment. Instead, he took a steadying breath and then grasped her by the throat. Suppressing her instinct to fight back, Natasha kept her hands loosely clasped behind her back. He lifted her to her feet easily, then a little higher so that her toes barely touched the floor when she arched her feet. Neither said a word, as if voices would break the spell.
Depositing her on the bed, Natasha wriggled a bit to get comfortable. Lying on her back, her legs fell over the side. Loki pushed them wide, eyes dropping from hers to take in the scrap of black lace covering her red curls. He pulled them off of her, ripping the lace and discarding it without another glance. Crashing to his knees in front of her, he surged forward to mouth at her flesh. She reached down to him, but the moment her fingers brushed against his dark hair, he looked up at her with flashing eyes. Magic pressed against her, holding her wrists down on either side of her head, a ghostly hand circling her throat. It didn't press, but felt almost like a choker. A pair moved up along her abdomen until they could cup her bare breasts, and then Loki bent down to lick at her clit. His hands held her hips almost tight enough to bruise, keeping her from moving too much. Natasha let her breathing grow harsh and loud; usually she was very quiet.
He brought her to the brink of orgasm, then pulled away. Whimpering, she looked down to see what he was doing. Loki smirked as he roughly repositioned her on her hands and knees. The magic hands were still on her, one pair cupping and pinching her nipples while another simply held her throat. "I want to hear you," he growled, a thread of menace in his tone. He thrust deep inside of her, making Natasha cry out. "Yes," he growled, fingers digging deeply into the flesh of her hips as he held her. "Just like that."
Her fingers scrabbled for some kind of purchase against the soft sheets as he fucked her hard and fast. She moaned and made mewling sounds, forcing herself to be louder than she normally would be. He groaned, pleased with the sounds, and another ghostly hand dipped between her legs to rub her clit. Natasha nearly wailed at the contact, muffling the sound by pressing her face into the sheets. "No," Loki roared, displeased, and another magical hand yanked back on her hair. The hand at her throat tightened and the pair at her breasts pinched painfully. She yelped more in surprise than pain, but it apparently assuaged his ego. The pain lessened, and he resumed his punishing pace. Pleasure still shot through her with each thrust, until she came with a hoarse cry, fingers pulling at the sheets as she tried to writhe and arch her back.
Loki pulled out of her abruptly, and Natasha made a disappointed sound. He turned her over and spread her legs wide, stepping into the space between them. The expression on his face was intent and intense, fixated on her flushed cheeks and parted lips, makeup smeared across her face and the sheet beneath her. Lifting one leg to rest against his chest, Loki guided his cock into her and slid into her slicked sheath. He kept one hand curled around her knee, keeping that leg in place as he leaned forward. His other hand was at her hip. The conjured hands still held her down and teased her breasts and clit as he began to thrust into her. Natasha made mewling sounds of pleasure as she tried to tilt her hips. Loki leaned forward, changing the angle of his thrusts and nearly lifting her ass off of the bed as if he could fold her in half. Her mewls changed to deep, throaty moans, and Loki gave her a predatory smile in response.
The magic gave him an advantage in getting her overwhelmed by sensation, and Natasha pushed against the magic as best as she could. His smile grew into a manic grin as he felt her attempts to move, and he laughed. "You want this so badly, Natasha," he growled, everything in his posture screaming that he wanted to utterly possess her.
"God," she moaned, trying to arch her back. It wouldn't hurt to give him a little something.
That was just what he wanted to hear. Startled joy suffused his features, and the magic touches took on a less frantic aspect. Now they were more like caresses, and Loki leaned into her. His hand slid down her thigh to cup a breast tenderly. "I am your god, are I not?" he asked, voice thick with raw desire. He sounded on the verge of orgasm, so she clenched her inner muscles tight around his cock. She moaned again, hoping he would take that as assent, but it also felt good to have him thick and full inside of her. Natasha would never admit it, but she had actually missed his assaults on her senses.
Shuddering, Loki came, hips stuttering. He leaned into her heavily, and Natasha looked at him as she struggled to get her breathing under control. Laughing suddenly, he sounded utterly insane. He looked at her, lips stretched wide in that manic grin. "I should make you go to that party as you are now. Put on the dress, my seed on your thighs, my scent on your skin. They'll have to know you're mine, none of them can have you."
Natasha found that the ghostly hands were gone so she could move her arms, and she reached out to touch his cheek gently. "Is that what you really want, Loki?"
Her words were gentle, nonthreatening. But he pulled back sharply and let her leg drop to the bed, withdrawing from her body. "I could do that. I could make you."
"Or you could ask me," she said quietly, reaching for him. He let her take hold of his arm and pull him in closer to her as she sat up. "Is that what you want?"
Loki looked at her, expression shuttered. He grasped her face in his hands, eyes searching her gaze for something. "I've ruined your makeup."
"I can fix it. Most things can be fixed with enough time and effort."
The words were loaded, and they both knew it.
When he tried to pull away, she tightened her hold on his arm. They really should have some kind of safe word to end scenes, she realized. She wasn't sure if he still needed to be on his godly trip or if it was safe enough to react as she normally would. "Loki."
"You can clean up. You've said this is important to you." He sounded churlish, as if this concession had been dragged out of him rather than offered freely.
Godly trip continued, then. She pulled him down for a soft kiss. "If you command me to," she murmured against his mouth, "then I'll wash up and fix my makeup. But I won't put on any new perfume. I'll still smell like you."
It was apparently the right thing to say. Loki grasped her by the back of the head and kissed her passionately on the mouth, tongue sliding between her open lips. His other hand slid down her back, and he leaned forward, tilting her backward toward the bed. When he broke off the kiss to let her breathe, he fell to his knees and put his mouth to her swollen flesh. He licked and teased her wet folds, and Natasha gasped at the contact. Remembering he wanted to hear her, she made her moans a little too loud. Loki slid two fingers into her, curling them so that he could feel her slick sheath and give her something to clench down on. Natasha bucked her hips a little and arched her back, pulling at the sheet beneath her as she writhed beneath his mouth.
Loki continued until she came with a cry, gasping and moaning. He sat back, licking his lips with a pleased expression on his face. He stood and sat down on the bed beside her, then leaned over her splayed body. "I know you like this," he purred, sliding one hand down her belly. "Has anyone else ever touched you as I have?"
The truth would likely anger him, so she licked her dry lips. It distracted him a little, and Natasha reached out to trace the planes of his chest. "There hasn't been anyone else since you cornered me at my safe house."
That answer pleased him greatly, and she could practically see his chest puff up in pride. "So you're mine."
After driving everyone else away, it was obviously important that he could claim someone as his, someone that he could belong to. It would have been sad if she hadn't known that he had driven away those who cared for him in a deliberate manner, pushing all the buttons he knew would be the most painful. He had only himself to blame for his current situation, though he likely didn't have any conscious knowledge of his motives.
"We're still not in reality yet, are we?" Natasha asked, not touching the possessive statement. She doubted she had the energy to deal with all of his issues at this point.
"No," Loki said softly, hand still stroking her stomach. Natasha wasn't terribly fond of that look in his eye, as if he was plotting something else.
She reached up and traced the line of his jaw. "Good."
That gave him a jolt, and his lips twitched into the ghost of a pleased smile. "You will have to leave, however. You were most insistent."
"Yes. I've been tracking the funding and scientist recruitment patterns." She stretched, lips quirking when his eyes tracked the sinuous curves of her body. In some ways, he would always be predictable. Loki slid his hand down her stomach to curl his fingers between her legs, making her gasp. "Why? Did you want to come with me?"
His eyes glittered, the invitation pleasing him immensely. "Would it be appropriate?"
"SHIELD still has facial recognition software on the lookout for you."
"I could look like anyone you wished."
She reached for his face again, tracing the curve of his lips. "Could it be something that would fool others but not me? I'd prefer to see you as you are."
Oh, that certainly pleased Loki a lot. He damn near preened under her touch, fingers sliding between her slick folds to tease her slowly. "Are you going to attack anyone tonight?"
"Depends on the kind of after party I get invited to."
Loki's manic grin was back, and he started playing with her in earnest. "Is it inappropriate to bring a paramour with you?" He hovered over her body, and a magical hand cupped one of her breasts in a tender caress. "Would it not signal your superiors that something had gone wrong?"
"I've been in deep cover for a while now. It's my op." He didn't understand the lingo, so she clarified "It's my decision. Whatever gets the job done."
Slipping his fingers inside her, he curled them right into her G spot, making her moan and arch her back. It pressed her further into his magical touch, rubbing her other breast against the arm he was leaning on. The manic grin definitely had a possessive cast to it. "Excellent."
After he teased her into another orgasm, he gently picked her up in his arms. It was a move that surprised her; she would have thought that he would let her wobble her way to the bathroom. She was cleaned up with a wave of his hand, the smears of makeup gone entirely and the stickiness between her thighs removed. He watched her intently as she reapplied her eye shadow and mascara, a faint tint of blush and then the impossibly red lipstick again. Loki slid his hand down the curve of her back as she curled her hair again, painstakingly arranging curls artfully around her face, leaving a few loose. Before she could even retrieve her discarded panties and dress, Loki snapped his fingers and they were back in place.
Natasha looked at him in amusement. "Handy trick you have there."
"What use is a skill if it cannot be used to my benefit?" He was instantly dressed in a black tuxedo with forest green cummerbund and bow tie, his hair slicked back from his face. Sliding an arm around her waist, he pulled her flush against his body. "I intrigue you, Natasha."
He wasn't using that insipid nickname of little spider even when he could. This had to be progress of a sort. She allowed a soft, secretive smile to curl her lips. "Perhaps. It's fair to say that I intrigue you as well."
"A matched pair of liars?" he asked sardonically.
"Somewhere within the nest of lies is a grain of truth. The challenge is to find it."
Loki's grin was a baring of teeth. "Challenge accepted."
***
Loki accompanied Natasha to a fancy dinner party in a lavish resort high in the Pyrenees Mountains. On the way, she had briefly summarized what was going on so that he wouldn't blow her cover. As the heiress Emilie Turpin, Natasha supposedly had come to Andorra to evaluate a winter estate and see about investing money in a local company to help with the economy. The tiny country had been a tax haven in the EU until recently, but now there were business taxes, sales taxes and even an income tax. Still, AIM had already set up a lab in the area under the guise of research into hydroelectric power, pharmaceuticals and theoretical robotics.
"How terribly banal," Loki scoffed. He had applied a glamour so that he appeared bland and forgettable, and Natasha missed his smirks. "Your skills are wasted here."
Natasha flashed him a smile that was insufferably charming and innocent. "Darling Lucas," she said, French accent to her words. "Whatever do you mean? Maman had such love for her homeland, I simply had to see if I can honor her memory."
He laughed as they entered the ballroom. She had fallen into her role so seamlessly, all intents and purposes becoming Emilie. It was obvious that she had grabbed Loki's attention, and he really had no idea how she usually operated for SHIELD. He had fought her and had chased away Hydra informants, but he had never seen her in her element.
It ought to be an interesting evening.
The new director for AIM in Killian's wake was Ekaterina Sarkissian, who had been the company's CFO while Killian was alive. She expanded the company's R&D division, hoping to change its perception in the media, claiming that all of the difficulty with Extremis was due to Killian's single-minded and solitary drive to experiment before the formula was ready. SHIELD suspected that she was working with Project Centipede, but there was no proof of that. They were still at least three or four steps behind that group, so Natasha was directed to work the financial angle. She would be able to tell where to go from there; either project needed millions in funding to survive and expand its research.
Loki quickly grew bored with the small talk and insipid attempts of various businessmen to flirt with Emilie once it was determined that Lucas was a close family friend but not a lover. Natasha managed to smile and nod, gradually drawing out which of the potential suitors were investors in Sarkissian's AIM. One finally was useful and introduced her to Sarkissian. Natasha pasted her most vapid expression on her face as Emilie, but there was something nagging at her as she met Sarkissian. The woman was familiar somehow, though Natasha knew for a fact that they had never met before. She could place Sarkissian from the Moscow area by her accent and the cadence of her speech, but she knew that Sarkissian wasn't affiliated with the Red Room Academy. None of the old teachers there had survived; it had been one of the first things she had done when she turned mercenary.
"You're thinking of something," Loki murmured to Natasha when Sarkissian moved to charm someone else out of millions. "I can tell that much."
"That's rather the point, Lucas," Emilie said with a bright smile. "I'm thinking that technology should have a good enough future to make it a worthwhile investment. Why, Monsieur Lafitte seems to have excellent returns." There was a devilish spark in Natasha's eyes as she let Loki hand her a glass of champagne. "Of course, having the same name as a legendary pirate likely has nothing to do with such matters."
He smiled, following her lead on this. Natasha was grateful that he wasn't ruining the chance to meet with Sarkissian in person and try to find the financial trails. "Should I be of further assistance with your work, then?"
"Oh? Could you do such a thing?"
"You'd be surprised by the things I can choose to do."
"I'm sure," Natasha replied, lips curling into a secretive smile. "As you've said, there is endless fascination in this endeavor."
"For example," Loki said quietly, pressing a cell phone into Natasha's hand. "This could appear for you to look at, and I can replace it before she even knows it's missing."
Handing her glass of champagne to Loki to hold, Natasha swiped the touchscreen to activate it. No password, how trusting. She kept her social smile in place as she went through the contact list and calendar application.
Not only were there known AIM agents in her phone, but there were a number of high ranking Hydra officials, including Ophelia Sarkissian.
She passed the phone back to Loki and retrieved the glass of champagne. "This just got a lot more interesting, thank you."
Loki arched an eyebrow at her as the phone disappeared from his hand. "You're welcome. Now what will you do?"
"Same as the original plan, just more background research."
"Sounds dull."
Natasha smiled widely. "Not always."
While the party was still in full swing, Natasha exited and headed directly for the suite that had been registered in Ekaterina Sarkissian's name. Picking the lock with two hairpins would have taken her a few minutes, but Natasha merely gestured toward it. "Want to do the honors?"
Loki didn't look amused, and merely opened the door. The lock snapped open, and they strolled inside the suite. Natasha began to systematically go through all of Ekaterina's belongings, including her portfolio and briefcase. Most of it was fairly standard financial documents for a technology company and think tank, but the numbers didn't quite add up, especially after Emilie's fawning suitors constantly stated that AIM was so good on their returns. "This bores me," Loki declared after about ten minutes. "This isn't terribly exciting."
"I never promised exciting," Natasha reminded him.
He blew out an irritated breath. "No, you did not," he agreed softly. "This is tedious."
"Such is what I normally do for a living."
Natasha removed one of the jewels from her hair clip and peeled away one side of the backing. She pressed the small black circle into the portfolio binding, making sure it blended in with the stitching. Another part of the backing went into the briefcase lining. Loki merely watched her move around the room, arms crossed over his chest as he contemplated her movements. "You are comfortable this way."
Replacing the jewel in her hair clip, Natasha shrugged. "I have more to research tonight. Time to head out."
Stalking forward, Loki let his fingertips run down her arms. "And if I wish you to put that off?"
"You promised."
He spun away from her and opened the door to the suite. "I suppose I did not think you valued this," he admitted finally.
"And now that you know I do?"
Loki turned back to face her. "It could be a mistake, revealing a weakness to me. I know too much about you already."
"As I know you," Natasha replied evenly
At an impasse, Loki let out a slow breath, then crooked his arm in a gallant manner. "You have work to do, dear one. Time to go."
Not sure where he was going with this, Natasha still nodded at him. "Yes, let's go."
***
The party was just as deadly dull as earlier, but Sarkissian seemed to be looking at Natasha with suspicion. Loki saw it before she did, mostly because she was gathering further information and didn't have his enhanced senses. "Her cover is too perfect," Sarkissian was telling the man at her side, voice low and angry. Loki withdrew from Natasha's side and headed toward the restroom he had passed on his way back to the ballroom. Gathering a cloak of shadows around himself, Loki slid back into the ballroom and headed for Sarkissian. She was speaking rapidly in Russian now, which Natasha would have had no trouble understanding. It was a thought to translate it to the Alltongue with a spell, and Loki quickly gathered that she was contacting her cousin Ophelia at Hydra. She wanted access to the Clairvoyant now, and wouldn't do any further work on the nanobots that Ophelia wanted until she was sure it was safe.
Oh, no, that wouldn't do at all. This had to be the sort of thing that Natasha wanted. And if she got it, he would have her all to himself that much sooner. Yes, that was all he cared for. It had nothing to do with how pleased she would be, or how well she might reward him.
Loki extended his will and froze time at the party as soon as Sarkissian ended her phone call. He strode to Natasha's side and freed her from his spell. "She contacted her cousin at Hydra," he told her without preamble. "She mentioned a clairvoyant and nanobots, then a flash drive with schematics that she has hidden until Ophelia gives her what she wants."
Natasha frowned. "It wasn't in her suite, and the tracking devices won't give me a clue. It must be on her right now."
She had no compunction about raiding the woman's purse or checking her dress for hidden pockets in the lining. Loki raised an eyebrow at the thorough search, and nearly laughed when she retrieved the flash drive. "Clever female."
"You have to use what you have," Natasha said with a shrug. "How long can you use this spell?"
"I only extended it to this ballroom. The rest of the world still moves normally."
"This could be a problem if someone was expecting-"
Before she could finish her thought, the doors to the ballroom opened. The first man through the door froze in place as the time spell hit him, but the men behind him were still alert and aware. Two ran off shouting in Spanish.
"Well, there goes that idea," Natasha said, as if she had been able to outline a plan after all. Loki found it amazing that she was so calm. Moving to a table, she took a pen and quickly jotted a series of numbers and directions onto one of the linen napkins. She wrapped it around the flash drive and pressed it into Loki's hand. "You're going to need to go to Clint Barton and give this to him. He knows where I was headed, and he'll pass this along to the necessary people."
"You expect me to leave you here?"
"I expect you to let me do my job," she said, voice icy. Ah, there was the cruel edge to her, the one that was all business and no emotion. "They expect that someone did this to the room, so someone will have to stay."
"I can send you to Barton-"
"My op, my rules," she said shortly. "I know the hotel schematics, and Emilie has to be here or else Sarkissian really has something to suspect. You, on the other hand, already stepped out of the room a few minutes ago. You can go and come back."
It made sense, but Loki didn't want to respond to logic. He wanted her safe, and he wasn't about to look at that impulse too closely. "If they kill you..."
"They wouldn't be able to target me if they don't know I'm the target. We're wasting time," she hissed, striding back to the knot of men she had been speaking with earlier. "Just go, and make sure that they get that information."
"Natasha..."
"The mission is a failure if that data isn't delivered to SHIELD. That's more important right now. I can take care of myself. I don't need an extraction plan."
He had no idea what she was saying, but the gist of it was clear. "I can't leave you," he hissed, coming back to her side. Men had returned to the door, but they didn't know how to get in without getting frozen and didn't want to shoot into the frozen crowd. Loki could see that they were Sarkissian's men; each wore an AIM insignia on the lapel of their uniforms. "Not here, not like this. I can't."
"What will make you deliver that drive?" she asked, eyes flashing in anger.
She was beautiful, and he wanted to bed her immediately. "I need assurance you'll be safe."
Natasha rolled her eyes at him, but Loki couldn't even find it in him to be angry with the disrespectful behavior. "I'll be fine. Drop your spell, and you'll see."
Loki rendered himself invisible before doing just that. Natasha seamlessly reintegrated herself into the inane conversation with the men around her, and he moved to see what Sarkissian was doing. Her men approached her warily, and reported the strange phenomenon. He didn't like the way she narrowed her eyes or told her men to search the entire hotel for a spell caster. She knew far too much about magic for his liking.
He stalked her as she met with her men and ordered more to scour the building. It felt as though his window for escaping detection was closing sharply, but he couldn't leave Natasha behind. He couldn't, even though she had all but ordered him to.
What had become of him?
Loki knew he should leave, deliver her message as she requested and disappear. She didn't need his help to escape. As a trained assassin, Natasha could very well take care of herself. That she could render him helpless and needy should have been proof enough of that.
"Get Turpin," Sarkissian said finally, just as Loki decided to teleport to Barton. "I know everyone else here. Let's see what the little bitch can tell me."
No! Loki's mind screamed. She's mine!
Emilie had a politely blank expression when one of Sarkissian's guards asked her to come with him for a meeting. "Oh? But I haven't even talked with my financial planner about investments yet. Isn't this a little soon?"
Fists curled at his sides, Loki watched as Natasha bid her companions farewell and went with the armed guard. "Where are we going?" she asked in Emilie's sweet voice. "Is there an office or something? Because I really don't know all the financial stuff."
The guard didn't say anything, but brought her to a room with two men and a chair. The guard locked the door behind them, and Loki had a sinking feeling in his gut. Natasha didn't have weapons. Not that she needed them, necessarily, he remembered full well how she was at hand to hand. But this would be three against one, and he itched to help her.
"So it's like that, is it?" she asked, lips quirking into a slight smile.
And then before Loki could open his mouth to speak, she moved. The guard behind her was first to be attacked; she spun around him and gave him a wicked shove toward the other two. None had their guns out, and Natasha pulled the pistol from the guard's holster as he stumbled past her. She got off three shots in quick succession, all head shots.
"You really should have left when I told you to," Natasha said with a sigh, looking unerringly at Loki. "I'm no damsel in distress."
"I should remember that," Loki said, grinning at her. "Yet for some reason I feel protective of you." He dropped his invisibility and walked to her side. "Sarkissian won't let you leave alive after this."
"I'll be able to get out."
He shouldn't doubt her. He knew this was true. But these pesky feelings were interfering with his cold logic and usual rage.
Natasha pulled him down for a kiss. "If it makes you feel better, give me another weapon," she said, lips tilting into a familiar, domineering smile.
As Natasha stripped the men of their weapons and threw a shoulder holster on over her dress to hold them, Loki opened a portal and removed one of his favorite swords. It was three quarter tang in length, with runes along its length. The hilt was richly ornamented with jewels, the guard elaborately wrought to be beautiful as well as functional. It also contained a hidden catch that would turn the sword into twin blades for a dual wielder. "Dwarven crafted, inscribed to retain its edge regardless of what it faces." Loki held it to her reverently.
Taking it with the respect the weapon deserved, Natasha balanced its heft with her right hand as she stowed the pistol in the holster with her left. Looking carefully at the hilt and guard, she easily found the catch and separated the sword. "I like it."
He watched her grasp each blade in one hand, her stance loose yet aggressive. It would be fascinating to spar with her when this was over; he no longer wanted to kill her or maim her, and he rather missed training. "Have a care with this sword. It doesn't function as well if one piece of it is missing."
Natasha gave him a knowing, seductive smile. "That, I can believe. Now go on. I'm a big girl, Loki. I'll cover your exit and eventually make my way back to New York."
"Is that a promise?" he asked, the words difficult to force past his throat.
"Absolutely," she replied without hesitation.
Not fond of goodbyes, he nodded at her sharply and opened a portal behind him. He knew the cadence of Barton's thoughts thanks to the Tesseract, and he didn't even look where the portal opened up. Natasha kicked the door open as Loki stepped backward, each half of his sword in each hand and the holster slung around her torso on top of the violet dress. Stalking forward, Loki lost sight of her as she entered the hallway, though he caught a flash of her smoothly swinging the swords in concert as his portal closed. It looked almost like a dancing prop, and he recalled her saying she had once been a wind-up ballerina. She couldn't use the Emilie Turpin persona after this night, but he doubted that she cared about it much. Even a month ago, he wouldn't have cared either.
Loki turned around and found Clint Barton, Tony Stark and Steve Rogers all in front of him with the appearance that they were ready to strike. "Natasha sends her regards," he said, holding out the napkin and flash drive. "She requested this be brought to you immediately for analysis," he added as he tossed them to Barton. Stark and Rogers looked at him with suspicion, but he let the emotion roll off of him. They didn't matter. They weren't important. Barton was the important one, as he was closest to Natasha. She cared for the others, but Loki knew that Barton was special even if he didn't share her bed.
I owe him a debt, she had said once, but Loki knew it was more than that. She did not hold onto ties easily. She knew how dangerous that could be, how vulnerable it would make her. While she was absolutely able to turn vulnerability into a strength, that didn't mean she wanted to expose herself needlessly.
"Where is she?" Rogers asked as Barton opened the knotted napkin.
"In Andorra," Loki and Barton said at once. Barton looked up in surprise, though he really shouldn't have. Loki had announced he was at her side. "She will make her way here," Loki drawled. "She promised."
Stark was staring at him for a moment. "So what's your deal?" he asked finally. Barton's hand was tight on the flash drive and napkin, his lips compressed into a thin, unhappy line. He knew how far Natasha was willing to go to complete a mission, and Loki was just starting to learn this. Hadn't he been a mission once upon a time? She had told him as much.
"She asked for a favor."
"It's her op," Barton told them, voice flat. Loki recognized the strained tone he used. "She'll do what it takes to finish it and get back."
"Meaning what? Are we supposed to deal with Loki?" Stark asked irritably as Rogers asked "Are you going to try to kill her again?"
He supposed his rages had been rather destructive. Mortals would not likely be very forgiving of that kind of behavior. Still, he didn't care for them or their concerns. Loki shrugged and gave them a magnanimous smile. "She and I have an arrangement. Never fear, your lives are spared. For now," he added for drama. For additional flair, he rendered himself invisible as well. It was difficult not to laugh at Stark's expression, his eyes wide and nearly frightened. Rogers was on alert, and would be one to keep an eye on.
Barton was looking right at him, but didn't say a word. Loki didn't want to be beholden to him, if he could actually see the trickster. He stepped sideways onto one of Yggdrasil's branches and let the portal close behind him.
Loki would see Natasha again soon enough. He had to believe in that. Unlike him, she always kept her promises, and never made any she didn't mean.
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To Chapter Five - Resolution