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There were many things Darcy had been called throughout her young life. Friendly and energetic from delighted family during her earliest years. Curious and bold were soon added to the list from her proud father and beaming, albeit harried, mom.It wasn't until second grade and an unfortunate incident that involved Darcy climbing to the top of the swing set in an ill thought out attempt to jump to a nearby trampoline that things took a drastic turn. Or maybe it was the concussion and broken wrist that caused the shift. Either way, it seemed the wool had been pulled from her doting parent's eyes and from that moment on, her actions were no longer deemed harmless adventures. Instead new words were thrown around.Impulsive, reckless, careless.These words seemed to dog her every step; from teachers, to friends, and not to mention those few unfortunate run ins with the law. While many viewed her impulsive nature as a burden, Darcy herself thought it lead to more than her fair share of adventure. After all, when she found sparklers and bottle rockets in the bottom of her roommate’s drawers and lit them in the middle of her dorm room, the result was an explosive- Darcy herself had chuckled at the pun more than anyone else- party. It really was a shame that the sprinklers were so sensitive and ended up literally raining on her parade- and sadly all of her stuff. Including her laptop, which just so happened to be the only source of her finished internship applications with -if Darcy did say so herself- some pretty amazing essays. In a turn of events her parents would have labeled avoidable with common sense; Darcy’s laptop and those dreams of prestigious- or even remotely related to her major- internships were ruined beyond repair. Thus Darcy had frantically scoured for any open spots- and had found one that would even provide her with much needed science credits! While her parents worried too much, Darcy knew one thing to be true- Darcy Lewis always landed on her feet. It was that thought that carried her through her greatest adventure yet; one full of magic and aliens, heroes and best of all, excitement.Sadly, as all things must, the adventure had to end. Thor went off to the great unknown after saving them all again, this time instead of his psycho terrorist brother- it was from some seriously bad mojo getting freaky with Jane. Darcy frowned to herself, she didn’t even really get to be a part of that weirdness. Instead, stuck back in London while Jane got to venture to the great unknown. Still, the stories were pretty epic- especially when Jane was three sheets to the wind.It must not have made a truly lasting impression though as Jane had decided the god of thunder wasn’t rocking her world enough to keep putting her life on hold. Not that Darcy blamed the woman, the guy hit all the right boxes except for a crucial one- being present. After all, they always say location, location, location. Although, Darcy was pretty sure whoever said that didn’t mean for it to be an excuse to break the heart of a Norse god. As much as Darcy understood and even vocally supported her boss, she was more than bummed to see their only link to space crazy adventure time officially put out of commission. She doubted that Thor or the wacky happenings that seemed to follow him would be dropping by their neck of the woods anymore.That didn’t mean the excitement completely stopped though, Darcy mused to herself as she watched the frantic astrophysicist scrawl equations on a white board. From the excited technical garble leaving her little scientist, their recent find was a biggie.While Darcy was all for banishing the boring away, she really hoped this thing was not of the heart stopping exciting variety. Taking a lazy sip from her coffee, Darcy looked thoughtfully at the dull round ball Jane was currently attaching to various machines. It looked like a fancy paper weight to her. But who was she to argue with the machines that were going haywire just being near the damn thing. According to Jane, it was putting out some serious otherworldly readings.If that was the case, Darcy couldn’t really blame Erik for dropping it off and getting the hell out of dodge. While his mind may have been a little less on the sane side since the whole Loki debacle, his sense of unease near weird artifacts was through the roof these days. Honestly, he was probably the sanest of them all, Darcy mused as she stepped closer to Jane’s new toy.She tilted her head to the side as the orb seemed to shimmer, looking almost like ripples on a calm pond. Huh, it definitely had not been doing that a few minutes ago. A quick glance at Jane revealed the shorter woman was too focused on one of her many doo-dads to pay attention to what her assistant was up to.Not that Darcy could fault her; this was probably Jane’s only chance to study it up close. No doubt that SHIELD would be swooping in at any moment in order to pull their Men In Black act. Then the whatchamacallit would be hidden away where only high clearance approved scientists would be allowed to play with it. Which was a shame as the shimmering trick was actually kind of mesmerizing, Darcy realized.Suddenly, Darcy felt the overwhelming urge to feel it. Her breath quickened in anticipation, heart thudding loudly in her ears as her fingers drifted towards the pulsing energy. The orb seemed to radiate the faintest silver color as her hand drew closer to it. The instant her fingertips brushed against the surprisingly warm surface, a small shock pulsed down her hand, barely noticeable, and then…Nothing.The odd shimmering was gone and it was simply a dull looking ball once more. Tilting her head in confusion, Darcy leaned closer to the object before suddenly picking it up in both hands, the connected machines wobbling slightly as the wires fell away.Other than a surprisingly solid weight in her hands, there was no great reaction- no pulsing, no shocks, not even the warm feeling from before.Frowning, Darcy stood up straight and leaned against the desk, blinking owlishly down at clearly broken thingamajig. "Well that was a letdown."That got Jane’s attention and she finally looked up to see her assistant holding the artifact up towards the light with a disgruntled expression. A startled shout left Jane as she immediately ran over to gently scoop it from the younger woman, sending dirty looks the entire time. “Seriously? Can you not?”Darcy didn’t bother to look sheepish as she gave a careless shrug. “Meh, it was worth a try.”“Did you really learn nothing from London?” Jane chided before turning to the object in question once more, oh so gently setting it down. Much further away from where it had previously been, Darcy noted with wry amusement.“Yeah, never kiss the intern.” Darcy muttered, cringing at the memory of the endless puppy dog eyes she had been forced to endure after that adrenaline fueled lip lock.When that didn’t garner a response, Darcy let out a sigh. She had been working with the brilliant woman long enough to know when Jane was lost again to science.Instead of her brilliant wit being wasted on a less than interested audience, Darcy sat at her desk and let her mind wander as she carefully painted her nails a dark blue to match her sweater. The mundane task soothed her frayed nerves, but she still felt wired. There was a sense of anticipation bubbling in her chest that something had just happened. Or was definitely about to happen. After all, wonky and most likely otherworldly objects don't just randomly glow and then do a shit ton of nada. Darcy was no brilliant scientist but even she knew that. So she studied her fingertips the rest of the afternoon, searching for any signs of change. Honestly, she didn’t know what she was expecting- superpowers? She had even tried her own experiments, but those did nothing more than make Jane sigh in annoyance. Still, Darcy couldn’t shake the feeling that she was missing something. And yet, days, then weeks passed and still nothing. As if the encounter had never happened to begin with. Darcy might have even allowed herself to believe it, if it wasn’t for the occasional grumblings from Jane about those dirty rotten science thieves. Darcy knew how she felt, it still stung that she hadn’t gotten her iPod back after all these years. When even Jane seemed to have shrugged off that day and moved on, Darcy finally gave up, tired of waiting for something, anything to happen.She had no idea that it would take another 409 days and the deafening screeching of tires, shattering glass and excruciating pain to finally get an answer.
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There was a prism of colors spinning around, unending- and each one felt like daggers piercing into Darcy’s brain. Her whole body felt like it was on fire while also being hit by a mac truck. Darcy grabbed at her head, or at least attempted to- instead she found her arms flopped useless against her sides. Damn, she had never been this hung over. Her sluggish brain rejected that idea though, this was no after effect of a night spent partying too hard. No, it was so much worse. Maybe she had the flu? It took intense concentration and the rest of what little remained of her energy, but Darcy managed to bring her hand up to touch her forehead- or to be more accurate, slap her face with an undignified groan. Her skin didn’t feel feverish, in fact it felt like ice.That observation seemed all her exhausted mind could tolerate. Darcy didn’t bother to fight the wave of blackness taking over her consciousness.It could have been minutes, hours or hell, even weeks, but the next time Darcy opened her eyes, the rainbow of painfully bright light was gone. As was the unbearable pain. Left in it’s wake was a stiff tightness in her muscles as if she had decided to run a marathon- not that Darcy actually knew what that literally felt like, but she was sure those runners were aching for days. With a groan, Darcy sat up, pleased to note that her limbs had rediscovered the fine art of coordination.The first thing Darcy noticed was just how startlingly clear the world was- sharp and precise. While this normally wouldn’t have been worth her concern, the fact that her glasses were laying on the floor beside her raised alarm bells. Since the fourth grade, Darcy Lewis had been blind as a bat without her glasses. It was an accepted part of her world. Well, until she discovered the amazing invention of contacts. Then she switched between the two indiscriminately. With that thought, her fingers rubbed her eyes. The telltale feeling of lenses being in her eyes was absent. Just to be sure, Darcy brought a fingertip to her eyeball, flinching at the feeling. “Ow.”Okay, so a definite no for contacts.“I’ll take random healing vision for ten, Alex.” Darcy quipped aloud, not caring that she was the only one to appreciate the reference. Okay, this was pretty high up there on the scale of bizarre shit, but she had actually seen weirder. Or where did Norse gods are actually aliens and one used to bang my boss land on that scale? Maybe it was simply a meter and anything over the normal line was all bunched together.“Okay Darcy, not the time to panic ramble. I can save that for when I get home.” A decisive nod met her words. She had a goal: home. Now for the plan; first was figure out where the hell she was then…well then she would think of the next step. Feeling confident in her plan, Darcy snatched her glasses and stood. Her legs rejoiced at the stretch, working out the aching tension in her joints.Finally, Darcy swept a glance around her, taking in the grandeur of her surroundings. She stood alone in a long hall with marble walls and intricate carvings filled with gold that depicted, Darcy leaned closer and frowned, all sorts of gruesome battles…? A giggle fell from her lips as Darcy was suddenly reminded of the inappropriate murals gag from one of her favorite shows. She could only hope that she would bump into someone as bubbly and helpful as Leslie Knope. She shuddered at the idea of what else she could possibly encounter.Nope, she wasn’t going to let her mind go down that path. She was clearly somewhere that screamed money beyond even Tony Stark levels, so maybe that meant she would be showered with luxury before being sent home. A girl could hope at least. Darcy frowned as she did a complete circle and frowned. Only two options on where to go and both ways looked like endless- albeit super fancy- halls. With a shrug, Darcy chose the right randomly. She was pretty sure she read that if in doubt, always go to the right...The amusement of studying the murals as she walked wore off far too quickly and Darcy found herself beyond bored and slightly worried the hallway would never actually end. Finally, there was a break in the hall, branching out into two separate paths- both going in opposite directions.The decision was easily made when she spotted a tall burly man in distance down the left hall. Taking off into a jog, Darcy shouted. “Hey! Excuse me!”A full body cringe swept through her as her voice echoed loudly, bouncing off the marble walls. Still, she continued her rapid approach toward the man- who hadn’t even bothered to look over to see who was causing such a ruckus. Maybe they were used to that kind of thing here.When she caught up to the man, Darcy slowed her pace and sent him her most charming smile. “Hi, I was hoping you could help me. I’m a little lost…”The man didn’t slow his pace, nor did he even acknowledge her as he turned sharply to his left and walked through a large archway.“Fine, you’re in a hurry. Whatever.” Darcy grumbled to herself, following at a more sedate pace behind the man. When the sun hit her eyes, Darcy let out a large sigh of relief. She was in a courtyard that was easily the size of two football fields- and wouldn’t her dad be proud of her for using sports as a reference? There were large fountains with statues of weird looking creatures in them and a bright array of flowers that she didn’t recognize, but best of all, people! There were so many people, milling around and talking, some were clearly shopping at various stalls, filled with all sorts of cool looking stuff. Darcy made a mental note to definitely get some souvenirs before being sent home. There was a large crowd oohing and awing at whatever they were watching in the distance. Darcy tamped down on her curiosity and instead approached a group of finely dressed ladies all wearing intricate gowns.Either she had stumbled into a renaissance fair with the most epic budget, or she and Dorothy had a lot in common. “Fuck, I’m definitely not in Kansas.”In a louder voice, Darcy grinned at the ladies, self-consciously smoothing her hands over her jeans. “Excuse me, I’m new here and was wondering if any of you could help me.”Not one of the women glanced in her direction or showed any signs of stopping their discussion. Darcy huffed, this was getting old really fast. Clearly they weren’t the most welcoming people wherever she was.Not to be deterred for long, Darcy approached a young woman sitting on the ledge of a fountain, studiously watching a group of nearby children play.“Ok, I’ll cut to the chase. I’m new here and I need help.” Darcy paused then groaned suddenly. “But not with money! I’m not a beggar or anything. Swear!”When the woman didn’t glance away from the kids, Darcy let out a sigh. “Look, I lived in London for a while, so I totally get how annoying the whole tourists stopping you thing can be, but I really need help.” The woman didn’t seem moved by her plight and Darcy stomped her foot. “The fuck is wrong with you people? Can’t bother to help someone that’s not dressed just like you? How about just tell me where the fuck I am?”Still no response. Darcy clenched her jaw, she had finally had enough of this elitist bullshit. She was a person dammit and would not be ignored. Without thinking, she reached out to grab the woman’s arm and demand some basic common courtesy. At least that was the plan, instead Darcy’s hand encountered nothing, simply passing through the woman’s arm as if smoke. A strangled scream tore from her throat as Darcy jumped backwards, staring at the woman in horror. The woman continued watching the kids and smiling as if nothing happened.Heart pounding, Darcy stumbled away from the sight and ended up passing through a group of burly men dressed in metal armor. Literally passing through them, just as she had with the woman. The men continued with their jovial conversation, unaware that anything odd had just occurred.Visibly shaking, Darcy raked her fingers through her hair. “Okay, this is fine. It’s fine. Not at all freaky. I can deal with this, it’s fine. Okay, think…what would Jane do?”That question didn’t help as Jane would probably already have a dozen different equations to solve this dilemma. Her parents wouldn’t have been caught up in this mess in the first place so that didn’t provide any direction either. Fuck, it was up to Darcy to figure this one out on her own. Not bothering to think over her next actions, Darcy ran over to a large fountain, climbing up it’s ledges and staring down at the large crowds.At the top of her lungs, Darcy screamed.When that did nothing to gain the attention of even once person, she stomped her foot and screamed even louder until her throat felt raw. Hope dwindling, Darcy scanned the happily chatting people, all still oblivious to the distraught woman in their midst.It wasn’t until she had dejectedly climbed down from her perch that Darcy felt a prickling on the back of her neck, as if she was being watched. Eyes wild, Darcy glanced around frantically, spinning in a circle until her heart clenched in her chest and stole the breath from her body. Only a few feet away, stood the amused form of earth’s collective nightmare.Loki.Thought escaped Darcy as she felt horror shiver down her spine. Terror froze her every movement, until the monster tilted his head, looked directly into her eyes and grinned.Acting on finely tuned human instinct honed for survival, Darcy spun on her heel and ran. The only thought in her mind was of putting as much distance as possible between her and the cold blooded killer- and definitely some walls. She liked the idea of lots of solid marble between them. Her feet carried her towards an entrance to a building and she rushed inside, not bothering to dodge the crowds that were in her way. It didn’t seem to matter anyway as she passed through them as if they were nothing more than an illusion. That thought made Darcy stop dead in her tracks, feet skidding to a halt as she gripped the wall to steady herself.Illusion. Wasn’t that essentially just another form of trickery? Which just so happened to be the God of Mischief’s claim to fame.It was far too coincidental that he also appeared to be the only being capable of seeing her. The implications of that train of thought were too disturbing to ignore, spurring her legs to move faster. As each second ticked by, the odds of getting out of this mess were mounting against her- and Darcy was coming to the realization that she was shit out of luck. The only two even half decent plans she could think of had been ruthlessly squashed.Thor, while always an instant guarantee of protection, was not an option. At least not yet. There was no doubt in Darcy’s mind that Loki was watching earth’s mightiest hero, waiting to pounce when Darcy ran headfirst into that oh so obvious trap. That had left only one other plan. Escape. With only that one thought in mind, Darcy had sprinted across the giant rainbow bridge- and fuck if she wasn’t pissed that any glee from that childhood dream come true had been dwarfed by sheer terror.In only a matter of minutes, her hopes had been dashed. The towering man standing guard didn’t so much as blink as she had darted in and attempted to get the impressive machinery to work. Even if she had the know how of operating the ancient device, it would have been a pointless endeavor. Any attempts were thwarted as her hands simply passed right through everything and made an already daunting task completely impossible. Thus, Darcy had found herself back at square one, with no hope and a sinking feeling in her stomach. With her only escape route cut off, any chance of help was practically non-existent. No one knew where she was, hell, Darcy herself didn’t even have a clue. While Darcy had heard enough detailed accounts of Asgard from both Thor and Jane to realize she was in some sort of replication of the place, she seriously doubted she was in the authentic realm. After all, Loki was supposed to be dead. From what she remembered of the crowds in the courtyard, no one had seemed to find it strange that the disgraced and presumed dead youngest prince was casually strolling around. Besides, from what Jane had said, Thor’s scary ass dad was not in a forgiving mood towards the troublemaker. That meant even if they knew he was somehow alive, he should have still been locked away to rot. Loki was an arrogant bastard, but she doubted he was stupid enough to parade under Odin’s nose without a care in the world. Which could only mean she was trapped in some kind of illusion that Loki had conjured up. And that meant only the original troublemaker himself knew how to end this nightmare. With nowhere to run, there seemed little to do beyond starting a sinister game of hide and seek. And no matter how awesome she was at games, Darcy had a feeling that Loki was even better.As things turned out, Darcy hadn’t given herself enough credit, two days later- both of which included waking up disoriented in places she was damn sure she hadn’t fallen asleep in to begin with- Darcy was starting to think that maybe she was playing a totally different game than the God of Mischief. While she had continued to hide, always on the move and keeping an eye out, she was starting to feel like she was simply running from her own shadow. There had been no signs that she was being stalked, even if she did jump at the slightest noise- positive that Loki was just around the next corner each time. She wondered just how long the God would allow this little charade to continue before growing bored of the pathetic mortal.She shuddered at the idea of the being a plaything in whatever twisted little scheme the psycho had in mind. For only a few hours she had allowed herself to refer to him as Jigsaw until Darcy realized that for one, she wasn’t harboring any horrible secrets and two, the idea of even comparing her situation to a slasher film was the exact opposite way to keep a level head. She did have one thing right though, Loki was a master when it came to mind games. He clearly understood that dread was far worse than panic, it crawled over a person leaving them itchy and restless, with an odd hollow feeling creeping into her chest. It grew stronger with every minute she was left waiting for this limbo to end. Yup, dread was definitely a heinous bitch as far as Darcy was concerned- at least panic had the decency to fuel her with adrenaline and a sense of action.In a few of her sleep deprived ramblings, Darcy had almost wished that Loki would show up and put her out of her misery, grumbling over the fact that the lack of anything just made the situation worse in it’s own bizarre way. Honestly, she wouldn’t be opposed to him doing the cliché super villain monologue that clued her into his every move. At least then she could come up with a suitable counter attack. As it was, she had nothing beyond an ever growing sense of paranoia, which had embarked on a torrid love affair with her overactive imagination. Each theory she conjured was more gruesome than the last until Darcy feared by the end of this she would be nothing more than a raw bundle of nerves. Or maybe that was his plan after all, Darcy mused. Make her so anxious that she was a nervous wreck and easier to break. Then again, maybe he was just enjoying watching her suffer.The idea was so depressing Darcy stopped walking and sank down onto the paved road. There really wasn’t any hope. Darcy let out a broken sob. Her head ached from the spiraling thoughts and she still hadn’t come up with any plan, but she knew one thing with absolute conviction.If she was a puppet in Loki’s master plan, that could only mean unspeakable horrors awaited.
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A startled gasp caught in Darcy’s throat as she blinked away the images of destruction that plagued her dreams. However, the sight that met her eyes was hardly an improvement when she came face to face with furious green eyes, feeling the soft bed beneath her shift before the other occupant growled in rage. Faster than Darcy realized she was capable of, she rolled to the opposite side of the bed and off the edge. She scrambled to her feet and grabbed at the closest thing on the table by her side. Her heart stopped as her hands waved through the table. Fuck, in her panic she had forgotten about that. Movement caught her attention and a high pitched shriek escaped her as the powerful man stood to his full height. “Would you stop that you irritating creature! I know not where you came nor how you bypassed my spell work, but I will not accept my private domain being sullied by a greedy wench that chooses to capture ambition between her thighs, much less a lowly mortal.”Darcy blinked, mouth gaping open in shock. “Wait…did you just call me a gold digging whore?”Huh, of all the things she expected that was…not one of them. Darcy eyed the God currently glowering at her and frowned. Shouldn’t there have been bloodshed at this point? Or even some sort of manhandling to show her that she was nothing compared to his might? Not that Darcy was complaining, of course. Just confused. Beyond insulting her, Loki didn’t appear to be making any other move. Never one to question her good luck, Darcy darted for the door, not daring to look back until she was down the hallway.It took a moment for Darcy to realize no one was chasing her. That didn’t mean she let her guard down though, refusing to break her mad dash until she was beyond the palace walls. For a brief moment, Darcy contemplated exploring the area to find Thor, however she couldn’t risk his unhinged brother suddenly changing his mind and preventing her escape. He definitely seemed like a crazy mood swing kind of guy. For now, she would have to wait to approach the hero when he was away from the palace- and in turn Loki. She suspected from Thor’s many stories, that one of the city taverns would eventually be her best bet. Still, it was way too early in the morning for even a bunch of rowdy warriors to start drinking and the idea of lingering in town where Loki could stumble upon her didn’t sit well with Darcy.With nowhere to go and no one to help, Darcy wandered aimlessly, following the city roads away from the giant golden buildings, feeling a sense of relief with each step further from the demented younger prince. It was beyond the city, inching closer to the mountains that finally gave Darcy reason to pause. As if from her childhood fantasy stood a meadow, sprinkled with tall silver flowers that seemed to change to deep green as they swayed with the breeze and peppered between them were bright red flowers that glittered in the light. Darcy let out a happy squeal at the beautiful view. Clearly, Asgard could corner the market in floral arrangements if they ever felt the desire. The sound of trickling water caught Darcy’s attention and she turned towards the sound, a large grin covering her face at her newest discovery. “Holy shit.” Swooping trees circled the meadow and from the highest branches of each one, water dropped steadily, creating the feel of a gentle and endless waterfall. “I’m calling it, unicorns totally live here.”The place was magical enough that it seemed like a real possibility. Soothed by the gentle sounds of moving water and the lazy breeze, Darcy leaned against one of the trees and allowed herself a well-earned moment to relax.Lively chatter and a boisterous laugh filtered through the haze of Darcy’s mind. Blearily opening her eyes, Darcy groaned at the interruption of her impromptu snooze.However, any post nap lethargy instantly vanished when she looked up and met the puzzled and distrustful gaze of the very man she had spent days running from. Darcy sat up straight, her back rigid as she watched him warily before darting a quick glance to his companions sitting only a few feet away.“Thor!” Darcy gasped in relief, awkwardly stumbling to her feet. Any progress toward the Thunder God was abruptly stopped as Loki purposefully shifted, completely blocking the elegant lady, and in part Thor, from Darcy’s view. The protective movement froze Darcy in her tracks, taking in the taut set of his shoulders. Almost as if… he considered Darcy the threat and was anticipating an attack. It was the furrow of his brows though that caused her thoughts to swirl in chaos. She had seen that look on her studious little scientists enough to know exactly what it meant. Loki had just been presented with a complex equation that he currently had no answers for. Which could only mean…Emboldened by his bafflement, Darcy voiced a hunch. “So…I’m guessing you didn’t bring here?”Green eyes narrowed at her suspiciously, lips pulling into a tight line. As the tense silence stretched between them, Darcy sighed in defeat as it became clear he wasn’t willing to trust her with even the smallest of answers.Maybe it was the sudden hunch of her shoulders or the air of resignation that surrounded her, but suddenly Loki’s eyes were locked onto hers before he gave one pointed shake of his head.There was really no reason to take his word. After all, he was apparently such a skilled liar that stories had been passed down through the centuries just as a warning for any foolish mortals that might cross his path. Still, her gut told her it was the truth. She highly doubted the God of Mischief’s evil master plan would involve what suspiciously resembled a family picnic. And his attitude towards her lacked the fear me, puny mortal vibe an evil super villain typically tried to cultivate. Instead, he seemed suspicious of her sudden appearance…and if she was willingly to admit it, grudging fascination. Which was all great and good that she didn’t have a crazy and powerful God hell bent on turning her into a pawn, but that left Darcy with more questions than before.“Fuck, well I’m totally screwed. I have no idea what I’m doing here. Like, I literally shouldn’t even be on this planet so…” Darcy trailed off, not even sure how to end the sentence and kind of hoping he would take point and tell her what was going on.Whatever his response was, it was halted as a melodious voice called. “Darling, whatever has captured your attention?”“Yes brother, join us in this glorious meal. Mother was about to regale us with tales of her journey.” Thor added in a happy boom. The familiar sound made Darcy’s heart clench in sudden homesickness. She didn’t have time to wallow in her moment of melancholy as Loki shifted his attention, looking over his shoulder and then back to her, appearing torn over this odd development.Feeling helpful at the lack of violence and threats, Darcy piped up. “Yeah, pretty sure they can’t see me, just you for some fucked up reason. Lucky you.”From the disdain that flickered across his pointed features and the roll of his eyes, Darcy guessed that meant he had already figured that tidbit out on his own.Oh well, she was trying to help.As if debating with himself, Loki shifted and quickly glanced back towards his family again before letting out a sigh. Impressively, in Darcy’s opinion at least, he never took his eyes off her as he joined his companions sitting nearby.Darcy took it as an invitation and skipped over to the small group, noting glumly that Thor didn’t react to her arrival. She didn’t miss the fact that Loki sat down directly beside the woman- no, his mother, which strategically positioned her between two fierce warriors and as far from Darcy as possible- with the benefit of placing Darcy directly across from Loki- in his sight at all times. It didn’t matter though, since Darcy was happy to be sitting next to Thor, even if wasn’t aware of her presence.“By the way, my name’s Darcy.” There was a small pause as Darcy shifted, hesitating over revealing too much. While he didn’t seem to be a threat to her right now, there was no way she wanted to give him an easy way to track her down in the future.As Darcy settled onto the ground, her foot passed through the nearby platters of delicious looking food, leaving it undisturbed. Darcy eyed the exotic desserts and let out a dejected huff. Oh how she would love to try them. Not out of hunger, Darcy hadn’t actually felt that sensation the entire time she had been here, but she craved the taste of food. She had always been a stress eater.Looking up, she caught the startled and increasingly intrigued expression on Loki’s face. Of course he hadn’t missed the little incident. Darcy shifted, her nerves frayed from sitting so close to the usually blood thirsty god. Especially knowing his focus was directed at her. Surprisingly, he kept up with the conversation with his family, responding at all the right times and making sure never to look in her direction too long, however she could feel his gaze on her throughout it all. She knew he was watching her from the corner of his eye even when he appeared fully riveted by his companions.In a nervous habit she had never been able to break, Darcy idly picked at the sleeve of her sweater before doing a double take. For the first time since this situation had started, Darcy took in the clothes she was wearing. Specifically, the royal blue sweater she had a clear memory of destroying during an ill thought out attempt to put out a lab fire. Even as her memories told her one thing, the proof in front of her spoke of something far different. No signs of any damage beyond the loose thread in the right sleeve- the reason it had been on clearance in the first place.Huh, so random perfect vision and now suddenly repaired previously ruined sweaters. Yeah, she didn’t know what to do with that information.Desperate for a distraction, Darcy focused on the family of royals and smirked openly at the way the men revered as Gods catered to their mother. The remaining fear Darcy felt slowly slipped away. It was kind of hard to stay scared of a guy when he was smiling indulgently at everything his mom said. Thor too seemed equally delighted to be in his mother’s serene company. It was really kind of cute. The happy atmosphere drifted over her in soft waves when a sudden thought occurred to her.“Hey.” When Loki subtly shifted his head to indicate she had his attention, Darcy leaned forward eagerly. “Are there any unicorns here?”He ignored her for the rest of the meal. “For like the gazillionth time, I don’t know.” Darcy huffed, flopping her head back down onto the pillow and ignoring Loki’s disgruntled look. She wasn’t sure if it was from the lack of answers on her part, or the fact that she had taken residence on his bed that ruffled his feathers and frankly, she didn’t care. They had been holed up in his room for hours now and she had repeated everything that had happened since this boatload of crazy started like thirty times. Little details, like the fact that Loki was a whackjob in her normal life and his all-consuming hatred of Thor were deliberately excluded from the discussion. Darcy didn’t think those bits of info were useful, especially when she desperately needed his help. No need tempting fate and pushing the already unstable guy over the edge. Instead, she vaguely mentioned that Thor had at some point come to hang out on Midgard for a bit. She also was pretty liberal in the editing of Jane and any of her genius research. Who knew what an evil mastermind could do with any of that info? It was not an avenue Darcy felt the need to explore.The way Loki pursed his lips and threw carefully worded questions made it clear he knew she was neglecting to tell him certain things. But that was just too bad. He would have to deal. It’s not like anyone was a winner in this suckfest anyway.“Then lets go over what you do remember once more. What’s your last memory before this began?” As if sensing the snide retort at the repetitive question, Loki firmly added. “With actual details this time.”Ah, so he did notice her vague answers when she talked about working with Jane. “Fine, I woke up at the buttcrack of dawn like usual.” Rolling her eyes, Darcy sent Loki a smirk. “Want to know what I had for breakfast too? My usual sugar and cream with a hint of coffee and strawberry pop tarts-” Even as she said the words, Darcy knew they were wrong. The memories were hazy but she remembered feeling excited and a little homesick as she sat alone in her new apartment and ate a bowl of cereal, suddenly missing the comfort of pop tarts and Jane in the early morning. New apartment? Chasing the thought, she could suddenly picture Jane tearfully enveloping her in a hug and Darcy giving a watery laugh, both sad to leave her friend behind but eager to start her new job. New job? Darcy tried to follow the trail of the memory but came up short. Sitting up in alarm, Darcy felt her heart pounding. The idea that her mind was not as sound as she had assumed was jarring. What else was forgetting? The possibilities were endless. And terrifying. “Shit, I don’t know. It’s all jumbled.”Taking a few deep breaths, Darcy calmed her skittering nerves. She could handle this, just like she had with all the other shit that had been thrown at her. It was fine. Like a mantra, Darcy silently repeated it until her pulse evened out.From his spot at the ornate desk, Loki studied the scene with a curious tilt of his head, as if she was a fascinating creature he had stumbled upon during a stroll (which ok, yeah to be fair, she kind of was, but still, the guy could be polite and pretend otherwise, Darcy bristled in irritation).Seeming bored of the existential crisis happening before his very eyes, Loki turned back to his notebook, quickly scribbling something down. Which he had done for every single answer. “Without further information” She ignored the pointed look sent her way. She should have known there would be no sympathetic shoulder to cry on from that direction. “we cannot make any conclusions on what initiated this phenomenon, nor it’s origin. We will instead focus on what we do have solid facts over. As these travels only seem to occur when you’re asleep- and not even every time as you’ve said, we will keep you awake for as long as possible to prove our theory. Then I will study exactly what happens to your form when you do fall asleep.”A shudder of unease went through her at the thought of the dangerous man watching her while so vulnerable. Still, it was the best (not to mention only) plan she had so far. She was practically the poster child for beggars can’t be choosers at this point.“In the meantime, I will scour the library and see if anything can shed light onto this fascinating situation.”“Basically, I’m a giant guinea pig to you huh?” Darcy grumbled. Idly she mused that mouthing off to the god with anger issues probably wasn’t the smartest course, but honestly she was too burned out to care anymore. Besides, surprisingly enough, the man in question hadn’t seemed to take offense to her snarky ways so far.“I do not know what that is, but it sounds horrendous.” The distaste that covered his face made Darcy chuckle.“You have no idea. So, how can I help?” The blank look that met her words did not put her off. “I’m serious, I need to do something. Anything! It’s not like I can even eat my blues away, come on.”“I had rather forgotten how irksome Midgardians can be.” Loki muttered, crossing the room before returning swiftly to drop a heavy tome onto the bed beside her.“All part of that famous earth charm.” Darcy bit her lip and looked down at the book with ancient runes covering the front. “There are like two major problems here. First, and this is a biggie; I can’t touch anything which means no turning pages- and that brings me to the second problem. Actually, just as big, I can’t read whatever the hell language this is.”Barely glancing up from his own ancient looking book, Loki flicked a wrist in her direction and murmured something in a language she didn’t understand. Green surrounded the book and the cover opened on its own, revealing perfect English. Eyes wide, Darcy watched in awe. Even after living in close proximity to a flying god for months, Darcy had never actually seen magic in action firsthand. Thor’s flying and mew mew hardly counted- a heated debate she and Jane had during a Harry Potter marathon once upon a time. Thor’s wistful reminiscing of Loki’s magnificent gifts had ended that particular discussion abruptly. Seems he wasn’t exaggerating.“Damn, magic is cool.”She didn’t miss the startled grin that flashed across Loki’s face before he turned once more to his research. With a determined stride, Darcy walked through the dim corridors and made her way to Loki’s room, slipping through the door as if second nature. The owner of the rooms didn’t even notice her entrance, head bent as he read from a pale blue journal.Out of curiosity, Darcy leaned forward to see… poems? The book abruptly slammed closed when he noticed her interest and before Darcy could say anything, he was already speaking. “How does this day find you?Darcy furrowed her brows at the cold, tentative tone, noting the way his shoulders tensed and his eagle eyes watched her warily. He could be so weird sometimes. The guy was seriously the God of Mood Swings.“Same old, same old. Still pulling a Casper if that’s what you’re asking.”Her nonchalant response wiped the tautness from his form and sent a smirk across Loki’s face. “Dare I ask where you awoke this time?”It was an old joke that made Darcy roll her eyes. Since the time she woke up in the horse stables- next to a massive eight legged horse!- Loki had been merciless in reminding her of the incident. It wasn’t so much the fact of where she had woken up as what had happened after. When Darcy had realized that the too many legged horse seemed to sense her and it was not pleased with an invisible intruder, she had scrambled out of the stables and into a nearby storage room. A blush covered her face at the memory of what she had walked in on. Fandral had been in the middle of entertaining five very eager maidens. It was one of the rare times Darcy was grateful for being invisible. She was no prude, had- at one point at least- had an active and creative sex life- and hell, she was all for exploration, but damn, whatever she had stumbled upon in that room went beyond regular kink. The entire thing had flustered her so much she had accidentally revealed the entire sordid ordeal to Loki. For some reason, he found it amusing beyond belief- and delighted in teasing her about it whenever the chance arose. She didn’t miss the fact that the next few visits after, they just so happened to cross Fandral’s path with suspicious frequency. If she hadn’t been on to the God’s trollish ways, he would have sold himself out with the delighted smirk that covered his face as Darcy attempted to avoid looking directly at the blonde warrior. She suspected that the only reason Loki stopped was the fact that Darcy had learned to control her impersonation as a tomato and that Loki found the other man to be tedious in large doses.Not wanting to spur any more teasing, Darcy breezed past the subject. “Nope, how long was I gone this time?”She didn’t miss the way he slipped the light blue book into his desk drawer as she spoke. Honestly, what did she care that he was secretly into poetry? So the guy had layers, that’s what made things interesting. Why else would Shrek have been such a massive success? Shrugging, Darcy let him believe he had distracted her from whatever the hell he was trying to hide.Walking over the far wall, Loki waved a hand before a flash of green lit the space and a shelf appeared. He grabbed the ever familiar notebook and flipped open to a specific page. “Two months this time. One before that, then three weeks, four months, six days, three days, eleven months, two weeks, nine months, five days, seventeen days, three months, thirteen days, two weeks, fourteen months, ten days and four days..”Darcy listened intently to the list, before frowning. “Wait, that’s forty-three times I’ve visited? I thought it was only like twenty one.”Loki nodded absently, adding a new date to the list. “You never can seem to maintain count. Most likely due to the disorienting nature of the visits and the varying duration you stay each time.”A simple shrug was her only response to that. Darcy had learned if she focused too much on the details, it quickly spiraled into a full on existential crisis. Which was even less fun when she couldn’t drown her sorrows in junk food and crappy reality TV. “So what new books did you find for our super awesome research party?”The notebook was quickly placed back into the hiding spot- Darcy didn’t know why he bothered, it’s not as if he let anyone in his rooms- like ever. Besides, everything he wrote probably looked like crazy gibberish.“I have decided we should further test your physical form’s capabilities. Would you care for breakfast?” His hand gestured to a plate of food sitting on the edge of the desk. Clearly, he had been too enraptured by his poetry to go out to the feasting hall or even to the set of rooms off his study that had a proper table. Seriously, the guy’s suite was five times the size of her entire apartment.Darcy eyed the offered food. While she couldn’t deny it looked delicious- as all the food here generally did- she was pretty sure there was like an entire epic story dedicated to the fact that mortals shouldn’t eat the food of gods, especially when in their realm…Shaking away the sudden chill that slithered down her spine, Darcy bit her lip. It’s not like she could even pick any of it up- which was Loki’s point though, they had to test her limits at some point.She was actually surprised that he had waited this long to bring it up again. The first time had consisted of various objects of different consistencies being tossed through her and when that hadn’t worked it was paired with endless green flashes as Darcy prayed the spells wouldn’t lead to an even worse fate. The entire experiment had ended with a lot of screaming- on both ends. Things were said (definitely not her finest moment and sure as hell not his) and in the end, it had been determined that it was best left to another day. Well, it seemed that day had finally arrived. With a shrug, Darcy reached out for the piece of bread, letting out a huff of irritation when her hand swiped right through both the plate and table. Loki for his part, simply watched and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like “Interesting.”With an imperious wave of a hand, Loki demanded. “Again.”The cycle continued, over and over. Eyes closed, eyes open, different hands, while trying various meditation techniques, a few distressing attempts that involved green magic surrounding her, some where she stood in the middle of circle of red paint (she had steadfastly cut off Loki’s correction. It was red paint if she said it was dammit).Hours passed with no progress to show for it, except for her increasing frustration. Each failure scribbled down meticulously into that damn notebook.“Again. Keep your breathing steady.”The bored and imperious tone made Darcy narrow her eyes. At her glare, he simply raised a haughty eyebrow. With a growl, Darcy turned her narrowed eyes to the bread tauntingly sitting there. Reminding her of all the things she couldn’t do. ““Fuck, this sucks! I hate this!”The unimpressed look sent her way grated on Darcy’s nerves. “Must you react so strongly to every little situation?”“No, nope, nu-uh. You don’t get to act like this is some stupid over reaction. I’m literally haunting an alien planet where no one else can see me- and just to make things more fucked up, I don’t get to eat any of the awesome looking food, or touch any of the weird shit I find! Lamest fucking ghost in history! I can’t even screw with anyone. God, what I wouldn’t give to just be able to make a small breeze or something!” Darcy started pacing, raking her hands through her hair before throwing them into the air. “And fine, yeah. I can deal with that. I can, but then I have to look at this stupid outfit every fucking day. I mean, shit, I only kinda liked this sweater back home, but seeing it day in and day out. I. Hate. It.”In a wise decision, Loki declared that the tests should be put on pause to allow her more time to focus, before suddenly announcing the need for fresh air.Silently following him out of the castle, Darcy made a valiant attempt to shrug off her bad mood, firmly reminding herself it wasn’t his fault. Sometimes it was hard to remain grateful for his help though when he was her only outlet. She couldn’t help but wonder if he understood and that’s why he let her hissy fits slide so easily.Or maybe that’s just the way he was with the women in his life. She had seen the indulgent consideration he lavished upon his mother. Just as quickly as the thought came, Darcy pushed the ridiculous notion away. She could hardly claim to hold that much importance in his life. They were simply weird cohabitants that were possibly friends in their own way and just so happened to have a common goal. Pushing away any serious thoughts, Darcy allowed herself to enjoy the serene aura of her favorite meadow and decided research wasn’t so horrible when done in the natural habitat of unicorns. When she voiced her opinion, Loki rolled his eyes. “For the last time, no such creatures live here.”“Psht, that’s what they want you to think. You really believe I’m the only invisible awesome being running around here?”The question made Loki pause, his eyes darting around the clearing even as he grumbled about her foolish notions.The following days were more leisurely- and damn did Darcy love when her visits lasted for more than a day. It gave her much needed time to gain her equilibrium. Plus, once a she got restless from too much research, Loki would cave under persistent badgering and give her a tour of all sorts of neat places. A few times ago, he had taken her to the ocean- she had run through the crystal purple water (and damn did she wish she had her phone! Talk about instagram famous) and pretended to feel it against her skin. She had also seen some underwater dragon looking creatures with an insanely hard to pronounce name. Darcy was pretty sure she had solved the whole Loch Ness monster situation right there. When she mentioned it to Loki, he had shrugged and stated it was possible as the Asgardians often brought gifts down- some of which were living- before Midgard was sworn off from the other realms. Darcy had asked about that, but he stubbornly remained tight lipped, although from the amused twitch of his lips it probably meant he had a hand in the situation. When Darcy opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was a giant tree that blossomed from the center of the room, overtaking the room to provide shelter where a roof should have been. She marveled at the vision. Of every other worldly delight she had seen in Asgard, this felt the most enchanting. Especially when she noted there was an alcove in it that was easily the size of a bedroom. As Darcy stepped closer to explore, she gasped at the sight of the Queen with her hands gripped intensely by the fearsome All-father. In all of her time haunting this realm, Darcy had never seen either look so human before, nor so troubled.“I saw the destruction of our family.” Frigga’s voice shook, her usual serenity nowhere to be found. “If she stays, there will be no other outcome.”Odin stared down at his wife, his voice deadly. “I will not allow such a thing to occur. If we must, we will cut the poison out with a knife.”“I fear we may have already waited too long.”As the couple embraced in a solemn hug, Darcy sprinted away. She had no idea what she had just heard, but knew she wanted to be far away when whatever the Queen feared went down. “Why not?” Darcy pouted and stomped her foot for good measure. She was well aware it made her look like an angry toddler, but dammit, Loki was being an asshat. He wouldn’t listen to reason no matter how much she explained the very sound logic.“I will not allow my sanity to be called into question and lose any respect of my realm simply because you have an idea.” She could practically see the invisible air quotes as he spit out the word, effectively mocking her brilliant plan. Guess he was too cultured to do the good old fashioned finger quotes like a normal person. “Just tell them your invisible friend needs a favor.” She snipped before letting out a heaving sigh. “Seriously, how is sending a message to Jane going to make you look like a loon?”After some serious internal debates and soul searching, Darcy had finally reached her breaking point, deciding it was worth the risk of revealing Jane’s brilliance in order to fix this mess. Go big or go home as the saying went, or in this case, go big to go home. Darcy grinned, glancing at her companion before deciding he wasn’t in the mood to enjoy her word play. In fact, he wasn’t even in the state of mind to appreciate her awesome plan. Beyond reason, he was firmly against trying to contact the astrophysicist, convinced it would lead to his ruin. The thought made Darcy roll her eyes and let out another aggravated huff. The stubborn man hadn’t been clear on his logic, just firm in his refusals.“As we have no possible means of locating her, I would be forced to ask for Heimdall’s assistance, which would undoubtedly be relayed to Odin and scrutinized. We cannot risk it.”Mouth already open to argue, Darcy froze as she finally noticed the odd undercurrent in his tone. A thread of concern when he said we, an unthinking slip of the tongue. Unbidden, a sudden memory of Jane ranting over Odin’s callous words towards Midgardians and his cold disregard filled her mind. Could that be what was disturbing Loki? That Odin would find out about her and what? Somehow end this strange existence of hers?Randomly, Darcy recalled her favorite childhood movie and the scene that had always made her quake in both fear and rage as she watched the King wield his power to destroy all that his daughter held dear just because it wasn’t of the same world. The thought of being the focus of that kind of wrath made Darcy flinch.The ball of dread in her gut told Darcy she didn’t want to find out just how similar the All Father’s reaction would be to the fictional cartoon King. Darcy ignored the subtle glare in her direction and watched the proceedings around her, humming innocently.A giant man slammed his hand against the huge table, looking at the other nine men in the room and then towards the King. “I say we must show them our might!”With a grin, Darcy cheerfully added. “In bed!”It was a lame joke and honestly played out years ago, but Darcy figured the new audience meant she could recycle old material. Besides, it was worth it to watch Loki fight the smile that quirked his lips every time. So long ago, she would have been surprised that the cultured Prince would find the crass jokes amusing, but after seeing firsthand some of the pranks- a word the man himself found to lack the proper reverence for his brilliance- as well as hearing grand retellings of his other antics that sounded both insane and hilarious, Darcy knew immature humor was right up his alley. Covering his mouth, Loki sent another pointed look at her. What did he expect, the meeting was boring and redundant. She had been on her best behavior the first two hours, but once they all started arguing in circles, all bets were off.Thor raised his fist in the air. “Vlysanor is right! I shall show them the power of my mighty hammer!”As Darcy opened her mouth, Loki quickly spoke. “Might I suggest Father, that we take a respite and allow cooler heads to prevail?”The King nodded at his younger son, addressing the entire room. “We shall resume this meeting in two days time.”Darcy practically sprinted from the room, running through the occupants without a care. She glanced back at Loki, who was walking at a much more sedate pace and chatting with Thor.“Come on! Lets escape before they try to suck you into the same argument!” Darcy whined, eyeing the others that were now glancing towards both princes.Loki casually picked up his pace, Thor matching it and grinning at his brother. “Eager to be away, brother?”“Only to find food.”Thor laughed heartily, slapping a hand across the younger prince's back. “Aye!”As they walked, Darcy listened to their discussions over the latest gossip. Sometimes she marveled at how young and carefree both Thor and Loki were. They both seemed so innocent and unmarred from the world- even knowing they were ancient from human standards. Darcy also noticed how Thor was too often rough and entitled, just as she remembered him from those first few days when he crash landed on earth. Then there was Loki, who seemed to have an ease about him, like he was comfortable in his own skin. Although, maybe it was due to the fact that before this mess, she had only ever seen him during battles. Even more surprisingly was how determined Loki was to solve the puzzle of this entire mystery Darcy found herself the center of. Still, for as much effort as they had put into finding answers, there was depressingly little they figured out.When they turned the corner, a group of simpering ladies passed, all offering varying greetings with coy smiles. It wasn’t shocking, as Darcy had seen much more blatant attempts to gain the attention of both princes. What did catch Darcy by surprise was the way Loki made eye contact one woman as she passed, watching her intently as she blushed and glanced away only to dart another look. His eyes remained on the red head until she was beyond the group. For his part, Loki at least kept some of his cool and clearly resisted the urge to turn his head to watch her down the hall.It was impossible for Darcy to contain her grin as she watched Loki continue on as if nothing had happened. Oh, she had just totally witnessed Loki, the proclaimed silver tongue himself, just flirt like a middle-schooler. She almost couldn’t believe what she had just seen. From the large grin Thor was sporting, neither could he. Sadly, Thor apparently wasn’t one to leave well enough alone and spent the rest of the meal poking at a clearly sensitive topic.“Lady Sigyn is a true beauty, she will make you a fine wife!”When Loki finally had enough and stormed out, Darcy groaned to herself. Well, there went any fun for this trip. A pouty Loki was best left alone.She couldn’t help but giggle when Thor turned to his friends. “We must celebrate the good fortune of my brother and his lady!”Darcy loved the big guy, but he honestly didn’t know when to quit.