Thor, "The Lodger" Loki/Darcy, rated PG-13
Fandom: Thor (movie-verse)
Title: The Lodger
Author: Paynesgrey
Rating: PG-13
Characters/Pairings: Loki, Darcy, Loki/Darcy
Word Count: 2,148
Spoilers/Warnings: post-Thor movie, no warnings
Notes: Written for the "juicy orange" prompt at The Summer Mini Challenge. Part 13 of my Mischief and Tasers Loki/Darcy serialization. The previous part is here.
Other URLS: AO3 | FFnet
Summary: Darcy confronts Loki for some answers.
Mischief and Tasers
Part Thirteen: The Lodger
Darcy didn’t know what Loki wanted from her. Yet, here he was, mostly, eating her food, criticizing her TV choices, and sharing the space of her S.H.I.E.L.D-funded apartment. Sometimes Darcy didn’t know when Loki would pop up, and most of the time he was silent when he was there, even ignoring her to do his own things. She hated how she was actually getting used to his presence, feeling a sense of loneliness when he wasn’t there.
It was all very troubling. This was the same person who stalked her for several weeks and manipulated her into sabotaging Dr. Foster’s research. He even impersonated someone else to fool her into dating him, even though it seemed to be more of an amusing distraction on his part rather than an important factor in his evil plans, whatever they were.
Darcy was still confused on that part too; though, she assumed Loki liked it that way. He was an enigma, and whatever he had planned for Thor’s return could not be good, but for the life of her, Darcy couldn’t figure out his clear objective for using her and hanging around her apartment all the time. She also didn’t buy the obvious lies that he was interested on how she reacted around the others while being the only one who knew of him.
She was sure that was part of Loki’s true intentions, but Darcy hadn’t been born yesterday. And though she thought initially she could tangle with Loki and let him hang around her, it was becoming obvious that Loki just needed a place to hide and store his crap, probably until the day he decided to go to battle with Thor. It was definitely something she wanted no part of, and it unnerved her that Loki was ultimately playing her for the fool, and she’d be damned if he’d kept getting away with it too.
Marching into the living room late that evening, Darcy had found her unwanted roommate lounging on her couch with his feet up on her coffee table. Pieces of his Asgardian getup were strewn about her living room, which she did not appreciate, and he seemed preoccupied with a rather large book that was probably older than the planet itself.
In a bold move, she kicked his feet off her coffee table and dug her fists into her hips. “Okay, tell the truth, what the hell are you really doing here again? Besides messing up my apartment.”
Slowly, he looked down at his disrupted feet and then up to her angry expression. He appeared all too ruffled that she had disturbed him from his reading. Darcy, however, didn’t allow her fury to waver.
“You invited me in, Ms. Lewis,” Loki said bluntly, yet his royal manners seemed intact. It only fueled Darcy’s rage.
“Yeah, but you forgot the part where you can’t just stalk me for free. I’m still waiting to cash in those music downloads, and hey, you ate my new tub of ice cream again. Thanks a lot!”
“I like cold things,” Loki said simply.
“Yeah, I bet you do,” Darcy muttered. “Seriously, when are you going to pay me back for the things you take? Huh? If you’re going to squat here at least pay your fair share!”
“Will you leave me alone and allow me to stay without complaint, if I do these things?” Loki asked, still irritated that they were having this conversation.
“Just ...what?” she barked at him, and after she blinked he had disappeared from the room, teleporting to God-knows-where, and he was back in an instant, with a wad of cash (probably stolen) and three new tubs of ice cream (Ew, the totally wrong kinds of ice cream too: juicy orange, mint and vanilla bean).
“The mint is mine,” Loki said, and Darcy’s words were caught in her throat as he went back to his dusty old book, acting as though the conversation never happened.
“Wait...what?”
“Are you going to keep saying that or are you going to let me finish my reading? I paid for the things you demanded, so I live here per our arrangement, so now leave me,” he said coldly.
Darcy couldn’t believe it. He was ordering her around in her own apartment. Granted, S.H.I.E.L.D was still paying for it, but they were the ones that moved her out of the science building. They were inconveniencing her, and now Loki was too. She stood agape in front of him, and he continued to read, turning pages that grated on her ears, acting like she was invisible.
She’d had enough. Darcy was pissed. She let out a war cry of frustration, which Loki found distracting enough to look from his book, and he met her crazed expression with an arched eyebrow. Darcy could think of nothing but retaliating in the only way she knew how - in the most juvenile terms.
She picked up a large pillow he’d discarded on the floor and she launched it at him, hitting him square in the face. The pillow fell, and she saw his lip curl in annoyance, but he kept his eyes averted from her.
“Jerk!” she exclaimed, and she stormed out of the living room and back into her bedroom.
Of course, she could have stayed there and finished the disagreement. She could have thrown Loki out, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to, and even if she could, she knew he’d just stalk her like old times. He was keen on staying there, and nothing she did would convince him to go. He may even torture her; lock her in the apartment if it meant getting his way.
But why? Why was staying with her so important to him? It wasn’t like he was there all the time. Frequently he popped in and out, and Darcy could only guess he was doing nefarious things. He’d come back with smirks on his face, and she could only guess he’d been prowling around S.H.I.E.L.D playing pranks on poor Coulson because the next day she’d see Coulson and he’d be in a sore mood - for him, and security would be stricter at the site.
If only she could tell them about Loki. She wondered if they had any idea of Thor’s brother being here at all.
Darcy shook her head. She went into the bathroom, threw water on her face, and mulled over the idea of taking a good soak in the tub. It was a meager bath tub and it hurt her neck when she tried to relax in it, but she’d be away from Loki, and hopefully left alone with her thoughts.
Of course, it wouldn’t be that easy. After she’d discarded her shirt and started the water, she felt his presence behind her.
“AHHH!” She reached for her taser but remembered she left it in the kitchen after her rant. In a last moment of defense, she tried to slug him, but Loki caught her fist.
“Hey, what are you doing in here? It’s my private time!” she said, covering her chest with one arm the best she could. She felt her face go hot.
“Oh, stop it. It is nothing I haven’t seen before,” Loki said, chiding her modesty.
“Yeah, well, maybe it isn’t about you,” Darcy said vehemently, glaring at him as she remembered that once, when he was playing Agent Tom Hill, she would have loved to give him a show like this. It had even been part of a fantasy, now one that was obviously ruined because of Loki’s deception.
Loki let go of her arm and she quickly reached for shirt, pulling it back over her head as he stayed silent behind her. She took her time, though nervously, hoping he’d get some kind of good show from it. Though, she wondered if Loki ever felt such things as desire, or even if he had any such inclinations toward her. He probably thought he was well above her to think such things. She huffed at the thought.
“Well, what do you want?” she snapped.
“I came in here hoping to punish you for that display out there, but then I realized that perhaps I have been too unkind to you, Darcy,” Loki said, turning from her so she couldn’t see his face.
Odd. It was like he didn’t want her to see his emotions. Loki had feelings?
Of course he does, Darcy thought. He felt anger and hatred and vengeance. He loathed Jane and had gone into rants about her, whether or not Darcy wanted to hear him bash her friend. So perhaps he could feel the other emotions too? Was empathy too out of reach for Loki?
Darcy wondered if this was his way of apologizing. Realizing that, she sighed.
“Whatever. You just stress me out, okay?” she said, feeling her anger suddenly dissipate. He did at least replace the ice cream he used. “I don’t even know why you’re really here,” she said in exasperation. “You come into my space and there’s no reason for it. You’ve already used me for what you wanted to do.”
“I’ve told you why,” he said, coming closer to her. She crossed her arms and tried to read the complex expression on his face. Usually, this was impossible, but in his eyes, Darcy could see that Loki was disturbed about something. More than preoccupied, which was probably the reason for the stacks of old books next to the couch. No, there was something else going on with Loki and he was obviously fighting internally with himself because of it.
“Yeah, you did tell me, and I think you lied,” Darcy said, tilting her head. “Mostly, anyway.”
“Well, they say it’s what I do best,” Loki said, and Darcy might be mistaken, but he seemed kind of hurt by that.
“Look, I get that you don’t want me to tell them about you, that you think your spell will wear off if you leave here, but what if I gave you my word I wouldn’t tell them?” Darcy asked.
“I wouldn’t believe you. You’ve been known to lie too, Darcy Lewis,” Loki said, almost amused by her offer.
“And what would it matter? You said you actually want Thor to return, that you’re waiting for him!” Darcy said. “What difference does it make if they know you’re around?”
“All the difference, Darcy. I have big plans for my brother, and the element of surprise will be on my side,” Loki confessed. “And well, I suppose it doesn’t harm you by knowing this, but I have come across something fortuitous that will benefit me whether my brother returns or not. In fact, I look forward to facing him once again.”
“I knew it. There is something bigger going on with you!” she accused him.
“That part should have been obvious,” Loki said with a dark smirk, one that she’d hardly seen on his face before. “Are we done squabbling about this rent thing? I have business to attend to.”
Darcy’s brow knitted together. “Yeah...” Her voice trailed off as she got another idea. “Hey, Loki, when will you be done with your business?”
“My plans do not have a time restraint; why do you ask?” he said, eying her suspiciously.
Darcy grinned at him, and she sort of felt crazy for even having the suggestion. “Because I want you to watch a movie with me - the perfect movie for you, and this time you have to stay and watch it, not bitch about it five minutes in and then disappear,” she said, pointing her finger at him. “You know, unlike the last time I asked you to watch a movie with me. You’d actually have to stay all the way through.”
Loki looked at her cautiously, his grin already gone. He didn’t know what to make of her, and Darcy could sense it. One moment she’d been screaming at him, and the next she’d been calm, inviting him to watch a movie with her. Perhaps she was crazy, and even Darcy admitted that she didn’t really know what she was doing.
Loki was here to stay in her apartment, and whether she liked it or not, he wasn’t going anywhere either. He was up to no good, probably planning a terrifying amount of mischief and destruction, and somehow Darcy was involuntarily getting roped into his schemes.
So, when life gives you lemons...make vodka lemonade...she thought, and she smiled ecstatically when Loki nodded and reluctantly agreed to her request. He didn’t know what he was getting into while hanging around Darcy Lewis. She didn’t really want him here, and she was scared for her friends while Loki obviously targeted them, but Darcy admitted she was intrigued by him. Maybe a part of her didn’t entirely want him gone after all.
And maybe, while he was here anyway, Darcy would have just a bit of fun before he inevitably changed his mind about killing her.
Part Fourteen
Title: The Lodger
Author: Paynesgrey
Rating: PG-13
Characters/Pairings: Loki, Darcy, Loki/Darcy
Word Count: 2,148
Spoilers/Warnings: post-Thor movie, no warnings
Notes: Written for the "juicy orange" prompt at The Summer Mini Challenge. Part 13 of my Mischief and Tasers Loki/Darcy serialization. The previous part is here.
Other URLS: AO3 | FFnet
Summary: Darcy confronts Loki for some answers.
Mischief and Tasers
Part Thirteen: The Lodger
Darcy didn’t know what Loki wanted from her. Yet, here he was, mostly, eating her food, criticizing her TV choices, and sharing the space of her S.H.I.E.L.D-funded apartment. Sometimes Darcy didn’t know when Loki would pop up, and most of the time he was silent when he was there, even ignoring her to do his own things. She hated how she was actually getting used to his presence, feeling a sense of loneliness when he wasn’t there.
It was all very troubling. This was the same person who stalked her for several weeks and manipulated her into sabotaging Dr. Foster’s research. He even impersonated someone else to fool her into dating him, even though it seemed to be more of an amusing distraction on his part rather than an important factor in his evil plans, whatever they were.
Darcy was still confused on that part too; though, she assumed Loki liked it that way. He was an enigma, and whatever he had planned for Thor’s return could not be good, but for the life of her, Darcy couldn’t figure out his clear objective for using her and hanging around her apartment all the time. She also didn’t buy the obvious lies that he was interested on how she reacted around the others while being the only one who knew of him.
She was sure that was part of Loki’s true intentions, but Darcy hadn’t been born yesterday. And though she thought initially she could tangle with Loki and let him hang around her, it was becoming obvious that Loki just needed a place to hide and store his crap, probably until the day he decided to go to battle with Thor. It was definitely something she wanted no part of, and it unnerved her that Loki was ultimately playing her for the fool, and she’d be damned if he’d kept getting away with it too.
Marching into the living room late that evening, Darcy had found her unwanted roommate lounging on her couch with his feet up on her coffee table. Pieces of his Asgardian getup were strewn about her living room, which she did not appreciate, and he seemed preoccupied with a rather large book that was probably older than the planet itself.
In a bold move, she kicked his feet off her coffee table and dug her fists into her hips. “Okay, tell the truth, what the hell are you really doing here again? Besides messing up my apartment.”
Slowly, he looked down at his disrupted feet and then up to her angry expression. He appeared all too ruffled that she had disturbed him from his reading. Darcy, however, didn’t allow her fury to waver.
“You invited me in, Ms. Lewis,” Loki said bluntly, yet his royal manners seemed intact. It only fueled Darcy’s rage.
“Yeah, but you forgot the part where you can’t just stalk me for free. I’m still waiting to cash in those music downloads, and hey, you ate my new tub of ice cream again. Thanks a lot!”
“I like cold things,” Loki said simply.
“Yeah, I bet you do,” Darcy muttered. “Seriously, when are you going to pay me back for the things you take? Huh? If you’re going to squat here at least pay your fair share!”
“Will you leave me alone and allow me to stay without complaint, if I do these things?” Loki asked, still irritated that they were having this conversation.
“Just ...what?” she barked at him, and after she blinked he had disappeared from the room, teleporting to God-knows-where, and he was back in an instant, with a wad of cash (probably stolen) and three new tubs of ice cream (Ew, the totally wrong kinds of ice cream too: juicy orange, mint and vanilla bean).
“The mint is mine,” Loki said, and Darcy’s words were caught in her throat as he went back to his dusty old book, acting as though the conversation never happened.
“Wait...what?”
“Are you going to keep saying that or are you going to let me finish my reading? I paid for the things you demanded, so I live here per our arrangement, so now leave me,” he said coldly.
Darcy couldn’t believe it. He was ordering her around in her own apartment. Granted, S.H.I.E.L.D was still paying for it, but they were the ones that moved her out of the science building. They were inconveniencing her, and now Loki was too. She stood agape in front of him, and he continued to read, turning pages that grated on her ears, acting like she was invisible.
She’d had enough. Darcy was pissed. She let out a war cry of frustration, which Loki found distracting enough to look from his book, and he met her crazed expression with an arched eyebrow. Darcy could think of nothing but retaliating in the only way she knew how - in the most juvenile terms.
She picked up a large pillow he’d discarded on the floor and she launched it at him, hitting him square in the face. The pillow fell, and she saw his lip curl in annoyance, but he kept his eyes averted from her.
“Jerk!” she exclaimed, and she stormed out of the living room and back into her bedroom.
Of course, she could have stayed there and finished the disagreement. She could have thrown Loki out, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to, and even if she could, she knew he’d just stalk her like old times. He was keen on staying there, and nothing she did would convince him to go. He may even torture her; lock her in the apartment if it meant getting his way.
But why? Why was staying with her so important to him? It wasn’t like he was there all the time. Frequently he popped in and out, and Darcy could only guess he was doing nefarious things. He’d come back with smirks on his face, and she could only guess he’d been prowling around S.H.I.E.L.D playing pranks on poor Coulson because the next day she’d see Coulson and he’d be in a sore mood - for him, and security would be stricter at the site.
If only she could tell them about Loki. She wondered if they had any idea of Thor’s brother being here at all.
Darcy shook her head. She went into the bathroom, threw water on her face, and mulled over the idea of taking a good soak in the tub. It was a meager bath tub and it hurt her neck when she tried to relax in it, but she’d be away from Loki, and hopefully left alone with her thoughts.
Of course, it wouldn’t be that easy. After she’d discarded her shirt and started the water, she felt his presence behind her.
“AHHH!” She reached for her taser but remembered she left it in the kitchen after her rant. In a last moment of defense, she tried to slug him, but Loki caught her fist.
“Hey, what are you doing in here? It’s my private time!” she said, covering her chest with one arm the best she could. She felt her face go hot.
“Oh, stop it. It is nothing I haven’t seen before,” Loki said, chiding her modesty.
“Yeah, well, maybe it isn’t about you,” Darcy said vehemently, glaring at him as she remembered that once, when he was playing Agent Tom Hill, she would have loved to give him a show like this. It had even been part of a fantasy, now one that was obviously ruined because of Loki’s deception.
Loki let go of her arm and she quickly reached for shirt, pulling it back over her head as he stayed silent behind her. She took her time, though nervously, hoping he’d get some kind of good show from it. Though, she wondered if Loki ever felt such things as desire, or even if he had any such inclinations toward her. He probably thought he was well above her to think such things. She huffed at the thought.
“Well, what do you want?” she snapped.
“I came in here hoping to punish you for that display out there, but then I realized that perhaps I have been too unkind to you, Darcy,” Loki said, turning from her so she couldn’t see his face.
Odd. It was like he didn’t want her to see his emotions. Loki had feelings?
Of course he does, Darcy thought. He felt anger and hatred and vengeance. He loathed Jane and had gone into rants about her, whether or not Darcy wanted to hear him bash her friend. So perhaps he could feel the other emotions too? Was empathy too out of reach for Loki?
Darcy wondered if this was his way of apologizing. Realizing that, she sighed.
“Whatever. You just stress me out, okay?” she said, feeling her anger suddenly dissipate. He did at least replace the ice cream he used. “I don’t even know why you’re really here,” she said in exasperation. “You come into my space and there’s no reason for it. You’ve already used me for what you wanted to do.”
“I’ve told you why,” he said, coming closer to her. She crossed her arms and tried to read the complex expression on his face. Usually, this was impossible, but in his eyes, Darcy could see that Loki was disturbed about something. More than preoccupied, which was probably the reason for the stacks of old books next to the couch. No, there was something else going on with Loki and he was obviously fighting internally with himself because of it.
“Yeah, you did tell me, and I think you lied,” Darcy said, tilting her head. “Mostly, anyway.”
“Well, they say it’s what I do best,” Loki said, and Darcy might be mistaken, but he seemed kind of hurt by that.
“Look, I get that you don’t want me to tell them about you, that you think your spell will wear off if you leave here, but what if I gave you my word I wouldn’t tell them?” Darcy asked.
“I wouldn’t believe you. You’ve been known to lie too, Darcy Lewis,” Loki said, almost amused by her offer.
“And what would it matter? You said you actually want Thor to return, that you’re waiting for him!” Darcy said. “What difference does it make if they know you’re around?”
“All the difference, Darcy. I have big plans for my brother, and the element of surprise will be on my side,” Loki confessed. “And well, I suppose it doesn’t harm you by knowing this, but I have come across something fortuitous that will benefit me whether my brother returns or not. In fact, I look forward to facing him once again.”
“I knew it. There is something bigger going on with you!” she accused him.
“That part should have been obvious,” Loki said with a dark smirk, one that she’d hardly seen on his face before. “Are we done squabbling about this rent thing? I have business to attend to.”
Darcy’s brow knitted together. “Yeah...” Her voice trailed off as she got another idea. “Hey, Loki, when will you be done with your business?”
“My plans do not have a time restraint; why do you ask?” he said, eying her suspiciously.
Darcy grinned at him, and she sort of felt crazy for even having the suggestion. “Because I want you to watch a movie with me - the perfect movie for you, and this time you have to stay and watch it, not bitch about it five minutes in and then disappear,” she said, pointing her finger at him. “You know, unlike the last time I asked you to watch a movie with me. You’d actually have to stay all the way through.”
Loki looked at her cautiously, his grin already gone. He didn’t know what to make of her, and Darcy could sense it. One moment she’d been screaming at him, and the next she’d been calm, inviting him to watch a movie with her. Perhaps she was crazy, and even Darcy admitted that she didn’t really know what she was doing.
Loki was here to stay in her apartment, and whether she liked it or not, he wasn’t going anywhere either. He was up to no good, probably planning a terrifying amount of mischief and destruction, and somehow Darcy was involuntarily getting roped into his schemes.
So, when life gives you lemons...make vodka lemonade...she thought, and she smiled ecstatically when Loki nodded and reluctantly agreed to her request. He didn’t know what he was getting into while hanging around Darcy Lewis. She didn’t really want him here, and she was scared for her friends while Loki obviously targeted them, but Darcy admitted she was intrigued by him. Maybe a part of her didn’t entirely want him gone after all.
And maybe, while he was here anyway, Darcy would have just a bit of fun before he inevitably changed his mind about killing her.
Part Fourteen