Coffee and Books 3

Chapter 3

I put my phone and keys in my jacket pockets, checking if I have everything. Loki is still lying on the sofa in his room, immersed in a book. "Come on, Loki, they're waiting for us."
Loki doesn't move, he just keeps reading. "Are you not coming?"
Still no reaction. He can be such a child sometimes. He's obviously sulking about something, but he doesn't want to talk about it. I move to stand next to him and put my hand on his wrist. "We're going to visit your friends, don't you want to come?"

"They're my brother's friends."

I'm silent for a moment. There's truth in that statement, and a deep rooted pain that is centuries old. I'm sure I don't even know half of it, even after evenings and evenings of listening to the Asgardians sharing stories. I do know Loki often feels like an outsider and that also makes him act like one.
Loki lowers his book and I can take his hand, giving it a squeeze. "You guys fought Hela together, that stands for something." My raven-haired prince just huffs and I try a different approach. "I want to go see if I can help Brunnhilde, and I could use your support."

"This altruism of yours has no boundaries when it comes to Asgard, does it?" Loki mutters, sitting up on the sofa. He pulls me down next to him, ignoring that I'm dressed to go.

"I just want to help," I tell him with a slight shrug. "And meeting a Valkyrie is cool too."
His attitude is getting on my nerves a bit. I get why he isn't keen on going,yet I'd really like him to come with me. After all, I'm going to meet some people who aren't really fitting Earth's standards. I'm nervous, really curious and also a bit scared. Heck, I just want him to come with me for this!

"Is that what you get out of it? Hanging out with cool people?" Loki says, voice dripping with sarcasm.

I get up from the sofa and angrily stare Loki down. "You're really being an ass right now!"

When Loki doesn't say anything I turn on my heels and stalk to the door. As I reach out for the door knob a tall figure jumps past me and not a second later my nose touches Loki's chest. I'm still mad, so I refuse to look up, but Loki lifts my chin up with his hand.

"I'm sorry, my little wolf," he says sincerely before brushing his lips softly against mine. I've got no defences when he does things like that and he knows it. He's forgiven, but I don't have to be happy about it.

"Get the helmets," I tell him, in clipped words. "We're taking your bike."

We arrive at the location before the others who took the car. All around us is a dense pine tree forest, in front of us a high fence that stretches out to both sides. The fence is at least seven feet high, though there doesn't seem to be anything of interest inside it. It's just trees.
"That doesn't look like it can keep Hulk in," I remark after giving the fence a critical look.

"It's not to keep him in, it's to keep others out. Mostly deer, to be honest." Loki says it loosely, which makes the statement even more weird.

I watch the gate; it's just a big metal gate, nothing special. There is nothing to give away that the people who are living inside are anything but normal humans. You'd expect security cameras and stuff, yet I don't see anything like that. That doesn't mean they aren't there, this is S.H.I.E.L.D. property after all.

"Nervous?" Loki asks, leaning against the bike.

"A bit," I admit. He stretches his hand out to me and I let him pull me close to take both of my hands in his.

"You don't have to, you know," he says. "Sometimes you act like having powers comes with an obligation to help. It doesn't."

"There are some superheroes who would disagree with you on that," I chuckle, although I know he's being serious. It's just my nerves talking.