Fixated

Loki paced his new holdings with a smirk on his face. He wondered if the humans truly thought the cell would hold him. He looked to Nick Fury who looked as if he was about to make an insignificant point.

“In case it’s unclear, you try to escape, you so much as scratch that glass,” Fury pressed down on a large, red button and the floor underneath Loki’s cell opened up causing the wind to gush loudly. “Thirty thousand feet, straight down in a steel trap. You get how that works? Ant,” Fury pointed to Loki, “Boot,” he finished, pointing to the control pad.

Loki chortled, “It’s an impressive cage. Not built, I think, for me.”

“Built for something a lot stronger than you,” Fury confirmed.

“Oh, I’ve heard. The mindless beast, makes play to be the man,” Loki smirked; looking into the security camera he knew the others would be watching from. “How desperate are you?” Loki continued, “You call on these lost creatures to defend you.”

“How desperate am I? You threaten my world with war. You steal a force you can’t hope to control. You talk about peace and you kill ‘cause it’s fun. You have made me very desperate. You might not be glad that you did,” Fury threatened.

“Oh, it burns you to come so close. To have the Tesseract, to have power, unlimited power. And for what? A warm light for all mankind to share, and then to be reminded what real power is,” Loki smirked as he watched Fury.

“Yeah, well, you let me know if ‘Real Power’ wants a magazine or something,” Fury retorted sarcastically as he walked away.

The smirk stayed put on Loki’s face as he wondered what SHEILD’s next move would be. Soon, however, his mind drifted to the woman he met earlier in the evening. Edie, he smiled as her name echoed in his mind. She was unlike any of the women on Asgard.

For one, her skin was a shade of brown he had only seen on Earth. It was rich and smooth as if she had bathed in sunlight. Her hair was unusually short as well, barely reaching past her shoulders, and was a mixture of blondes and browns. But her eyes were what captivated him. The deep green of her iris was gorgeous and somehow portrayed her quick, playful wit. He was intrigued by her, both body and mind. And the fact that she was the Iron Man’s niece made her all the more enticing.

Loki wanted this strange maiden for himself. And he always considered himself a man who took what he wanted.

[***]

“He really grows on you, doesn’t he?” Bruce asked with a sarcastic chuckle.

“Yeah, like a fungus,” Edie added and she received a look from Thor.

Edie sat with the several superheroes as they listened to Fury’s interrogation of Loki. She followed Natasha to the meeting after they managed to scavenge some clothing that was an improvement from Edie’s evening gown. It was a simple tank top and white shorts, but at least it was comfortable. Edie sat next to Natasha and listened carefully to Loki’s words, wondering what was coming.

“Loki’s gonna drag this out. So, Thor, what’s his play?” Steve asked, directing the conversation.

“He has an army called the Chitauri, that none of Asgard nor any world know. He means to lead them against your people. They will win him the Earth. In return, I suspect, for the Tesseract,” Thor explained with a heavy sigh.

“An army, from outer space,” Rogers clarified.

“So he’s building another portal. That’s what he needs Erik Selvig for,” Bruce said, piecing the information together.

“Selvig?” Thor asked, perking up.

“He’s an astrophysicist,” Bruce explained.

“He’s a friend,” Thor said.

“Loki has him under some kind of spell, along with one of ours,” Natasha explained and Thor’s face visibly fell. Edie saw the hurt in his eyes and briefly wondered what she could say, but opted to remain silent.

“I wanna know why Loki let us take him. He’s not leading an army from here,” Steve piped.

“I don’t think we should be focusing on Loki,” Bruce shook his head, “That guy’s brain is a bag full of cats, you could smell the crazy on him.”

“I don’t care how you speak. Loki is beyond reason, but he is of Asgard, and he’s my brother,” Thor said pridefully.

“He killed eighty people in two days,” Natasha said.

“He’s… adopted,” Thor resolved and Edie struggled to keep from laughing. “Have I said something to amuse you?” Thor boomed, his question directed at a smirking Edie. “And what is she doing here in the first place?”

“She’s here because she’s a witness and she attempted to face Loki yesterday,” Natasha defended.

“Yeah, and all I got were these stupid stitches,” Edie joked and Natasha smirked at her. There was an unspoken fondness between them. Natasha didn’t have friends, but if she did she would consider Edie one of them.

“So you attempted to fight Loki and he didn’t kill you?” Bruce asked.

“Obviously not,” Edie retorted with a raised eyebrow.

“But that seems to be his M.O. though, doesn’t it? Why would he spare you?” Bruce continued.

“Banner makes a valid point,” Natasha nodded and Edie’s head whipped around to give her a look. “Maybe you should go in and talk with him before me.”

“Are you fucking kidding?” Edie asked and Steve gave her a flabbergasted look. “Yeah, Cap, things have changed. Girls can cuss now too,” she said sarcastically with an eye roll. “I am not going in there with that psychopath!”

“Too far,” Thor glowered.

“Really?” Edie asked incredulously and Thor reconsidered himself silently.

“I think it’s a good idea,” the Captain interjected. “As long as you can keep your cool.”

“Keeping my cool is not the problem,” Edie sighed.

“Then what is?” he challenged.

“One, I am not a member of SHEILD nor do I want anything to do with it. Two, Tony will kill you all just for suggesting it,” Edie pointed.

“She has a point, when it comes to Edie he is very protective,” Natasha shrugged.

“I’ll keep him busy in the lab and make sure his eyes stay away from the security footage,” Bruce offered.

“We need you, Edie. The world needs you,” Steve said, looking her in the eye.

“Ugh, you all suck,” Edie rolled her eyes as she stood up from the table. “And you,” she pointed to the Captain, “need motivational speeches that aren’t so corny.”

“I’ll work on it,” Steve chortled.

“As for the rest of you: don’t kill each other while I’m gone,” Edie said with a quick wave before she waltzed out of the room. She walked down the hall and aimed to return to Natasha’s room to check her appearance. A little primping before she faced off with Loki couldn’t hurt.

“Whoa there, little bit, where are you headed to?” a familiar voice asked. Edie turned to see that she had unknowingly walked past her uncle.

“I’m going to Natasha’s room,” Edie answered honestly, though it still felt like a lie.

“Alright, well don’t shoot yourself with anything in there,” Tony joked and Edie smiled. She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly. Tony returned the hug, giving her an affectionate squeeze and a kiss on top of her head.

“Love you, kid,” he smiled. “I’m glad you’re safe and stitched up.”

“Thanks Uncle Tony,” she grinned, “Love you too.”

That was all that needed to be said between the pair. They both went their separate ways and Edie’s heart felt heavy. She couldn’t help the feeling that she was betraying her uncle by going behind his back. But at the same time, she knew what she needed to do.