Instincts (A Loki Fanfic)

Chapter Four

(Kit's Pov)

When Kit woke the following morning, it took a second for her to remember what had happened. And more importantly, how she ended up sleeping on the most comfortable surface she's ever slept on. It felt like a cloud, its comfort knowing no bounds.

After a quick yawn, Kit lifted her head just enough to look around the room. It was mostly a forest green, sprinkled with black and gold accents. The scene actually reminded her a lot of Loki, wherever he was.

"Hello Kitten." Found him. Loki sat on his bed, back to the headboard and a book in his lap. He smiled lightly when she meowed a hello, returning to the stories in his hands.

She got up and stretched, shaking off the stickiness from waking up. That tired, slow feeling of the morning. With her energy reserves now full-powered, she looked for something to do.

"What- Kit, what are you doing?" Loki laughed as a sneeze echoed throughout the room. Kit had jumped from her perch on the bed, hiding beneath the mattress. Or, exploring- technically. She continued forward, peeking in every corner of the room, jumping on every surface. Which included back onto the bed, quickly finding the one thing she hadn't figured out yet. Whatever that papery rectangle thing in Loki's hands was.

"Wait, don't-" He warned, soon sighing in defeat as she laid dramatically across his book. He wasn't allowed to do anything but pay attention to her. Maybe it was the cat in her needing the attention, but she couldn't think of anything better than to be right where his attention was pointed at. "Alright, alright. We can go explore." He said, vanishing the book from under her. Kit jumped up in surprise, looking for where it could have gone, realising Loki had made it disappear.

Loki stood from the bed, Kit jumping onto his shoulders. It was difficult to stay there with his hair in the way, although she made it work. He smelled like mint and tea, something she just couldn't get enough of. He reached up to scratch behind her ears, that same sound rumbling in her chest as he did so.

*

"About time you came down. I wanted to see our little Котя." Natasha said when they appeared at the door to the common room. Kit jumped down from Loki's shoulders, trotting over to her. Nat was the one that freed her after all.

"She's not just yours Natasha, pass her over." Tony said, reaching for Kit. But before she could escape, Nat picked her up and held her close. "Hey!"

"You're such a child, Stark. You've got to be gentle with cats. Especially ones that can chew your face off if they want to." She said, cooing to the kitty in her arms some more. Loki moved to the edge of the group, as Kit was ever-so-gently passed around from person to person. Once she reached Nat's arms again, that had been just about enough people time for her.

Kit jumped from her arms, hiding away beneath Loki's chair.

"Seems she's picked her favorite, congratulations brother!" Thor boomed, spooking the poor cat. Kit sped around the room, looking for a place to hide. Soon finding just that inside the very large, newly emptied, poptart box on the counter.

"You oaf, you've scared her." Loki snapped, sighing and moving towards the box where only a tail was dangling out.

When his footsteps stopped, Kit peeked her head up to see what was going on. But it was that adorable peek that cats do, with only barely their ears and eyes showing. She glanced around the room, before a light on the wall caught her attention. It moved ever so slightly, wobbling almost.

She headed cautiously towards the wall, staring up at whatever it could be. 

"She sees the reflection of your phone." Clint chuckled to Tony, who was the one taking pictures of everything. Mostly her, actually.

Then it moved. The streak of light moved across the wall, Kit chasing it so she would be directly beneath it. She could hear the team laughing and cooing over her, although Kit only wanted the thing to come closer. So she could catch it.

"Hey Loki, do that thing you did yesterday, with the light orb." Steve insisted, as Loki produced an illusion of the same toy from yesterday. It took a moment for her to spot it, but once she recognised the wondrous trick, she began chasing it around the room.

And just like yesterday, as the prey in front of her sped up, she matched its speed. Until there was nothing left to do but change forms.

In an instant her body grew ten times its size, Kit jumping and catching it.

"That is much more impressive in real life." Bruce laughed, as the team backed up to make room for her new size. "What do you think causes it?"

"Could be anything from adrenaline to a voluntary change." Tony theorized. The science bros were at it again it seemed. "Too bad we can't ask her."

"Can't you talk to her with allspeak or something?" Clint asked the gods, as Thor shook his head.

"Animals don't speak in a way we can translate clearly. Most, at least."

"Well, it was a long shot anyways." Tony shrugged, as the giant panther chewed away at the light toy in her mouth. Kit played and tossed it around the room for the rest of the hour, inevitably laying out in a nice patch of sun she found. It was her new favorite thing for sure, the sun's rays warming her black fur. Which may or may not have led to a purring puddle of panther, the team patting her head of stroking her back every so often as they passed by.

Although she didn't notice where the others were constantly, Kitten did notice Loki, how he wandered from room to room yet still always staying within eyesight of herself. And she didn't quite know why, but it warmed her heart that he thought to make sure she was safe. To stay with her, no matter how strong or defenseless her form she chose was.

Maybe this place really wasn't going to hurt her.