six
"and that is her burden"

Although an amount of her power was spent, Lusine did not feel drained like she had when the significant allowance of her power had been spent preserving her own life. Keeping her from being completely torn apart by the void, lashed by its muscular tail, spiked and barbed while she wept and begged for her life.

And when her brother walked out of the darkness, she'd fallen apart with grief. Her own brother. The brother she'd killed and the death she regretted more than any other death she had experienced.

The love she had felt for Regina or for Cloris had nothing on the blood love that twins had.

But he came back to her in her hour of need. In the moment where she finally considered giving in to the calls of the void as it whispered its melodies to her. Lycus made his bargains and lashed his silver tongue.

She had ended his life, but he had saved hers.

"I don't like it," Steve said, his face an open book. Far from a man of mystery, he wore his emotions like a dust jacket.

"What?" The man who had introduced himself as Tony Stark asked, "Rock of Ages giving up so easily?" He pushed his sleeves up.

Lusine watched the exchange carefully. Tony Stark could be considered a man of many characteristics, arrogance being one of them, but he was an extremely intelligent man with his cards held close to his chest until he, and only he, decided to reveal them. And she liked that. Thought him wise to do such a thing in a world where everyone wants to know everything about everyone else.

But sometimes his confidence got the better of his judgement, if this exchange was anything to go by.

Lusine knew Loki better than any of them here. She'd bore her heart to him, slept beside him, slept with him, fought along side him and against him. Steve was smart to know that a god would not go easy. Especially not a god of mischief and lies.

But Lusine couldn't bring herself to input this information in the conversation and instead sat pretty and watched, keeping her eyes roaming, almost lazily, but observing everything. There would never be a day where observation wouldn't pay off.

"I don't remember it being this easy," Steve admit, folding his arms across himself again, a habit of his. "This guy packs a wallop."

"Still," Tony continued, "you were pretty spry, for anolder fellow. What's your thing?Pilates?"

"What?"

Lusine tuned out at the foreign words and at the sensation of those familiar, burning blue eyes locked on her. It was undoubtedly a mistake to meet them, to challenge them. There was no chance of her beating the force of them bearing down on her and suddenly her dress was too much, too hot on her skin.

A ghost stared at her with Loki's eyes.

His face was leaner, sharper, and all edges with no meat. His eyes were sunken in, ghastly in comparison to the witty god who'd offered her a dance, who she'd flirted with on balconies and kissed like he was fine wine.

Her lips parted and her fingers curled into the material of her dress as she wondered if she was a ghost to him too. Two ghosts staring at one another, lost in time. Lost in a world that wasn't theirs to inhabit.

If she were a fool, she would have risen to her feet and gone to him. Clutched him tight. Kissed his temple. And he would've let her.

But she was not a fool and neither was he.

With a crack of lightning, the ghosts evaporated and she jolted to her feet, blinking rapidly to bring herself back to the present.

"Where's this come from?" Natasha called from the front.

Lusine watched Loki lean forward and look around nervously, peering up at the roof of the quinjet with a genuine fear. She knew why and he was not a fool to be afraid.

"What's the matter?" Steve questioned, voice flat. "Scared of a little lightning?"

"I'm not overly fond of what follows," Loki replied, locking eyes with Lusine once more, maybe even in a plea for help. She understood.

A crash on the roof of the quinjet shocked everyone, jolting them into realisation that this wasn't just an average lightning storm. Steve makes for his cowl while Tony puts on his helmet and opens the quinjet door.

Lusine doesn't move.

"What are you doing?" Steve asked formidably, taking a step forwards.

Luisne barely had time to give her old friend a smile before Thor had thrown Tony back into Steve, grabbed Loki by the neck and swept from the quinjet once more, leaving them in a muddle of confusion and annoyance.

She did nothing but watch as Tony flew out after them and then Steve too, parachute on his back, despite Natasha's warnings to stay behind. Lusine strode to the edge of the door, held onto the edge and then jumped.

With a whisk of her power, she teleported herself in short bursts safely to the ground, unable to do long distances without exhausting her power completely.

Loki was alone. Thor and Ironman battling it out further away, the sound of the hammer on metal outstanding. She could see him there, perched on the cliff edge and she made her move, teleporting the short distance.

Even in that short amount of time, she felt exhausted, but seeing him there refuelled her somewhat.

"I wondered when we would see each other again," He announced before he had even turned his head to look her in the eyes. However, when he did turn, it was like they'd never been away from one another.

"You thought you'd pushed me to my death," Lusine replied stiffly, taking a step forwards. "You wanted me to die."

He rose to his feet. She'd forgotten how he towered over her. "I didn't want you dead. I no longer believed it was you in control anymore and I made a mistake," He said sternly, gaze flickering across the features of her face he'd commit to memory. "But you seem... more attuned to your abilities now."

"I trusted you and you betrayed me."

"You attempted to kill me," Loki snapped back, words lashing out at the anger she'd built between them. "You betrayed me."

"After you exiled me from Asgard," She bit back with the strong jaws of a wolf, clamping down on the neck of her prey, savouring the flavour of metallic blood on her tongue, letting it paint her mouth rouge. "You exiled me even though I loved you with all my existence. All that power I had was all for you. It was yours."

"You could not control it. You were a danger to me and to Asgard," Loki reasoned, taking a step towards her with a gentle smile at his lips. "And I thought it would be better for the greater good if you died."

"And was it?" Lusine asked, voice a low rumble in her raw throat.

"Do you not think it was? Where you stand, you look more alive than you did since the last time I saw you. I did not want you to die. I never wanted you to die, but all that power within you was uncontrolled, untamed and a force to fear."

Lusine swallowed and looked away, jaw clenched tight. "Do you think me stupid?"

"I'm sorry?"

"I was being overcome by the void when we fought," She hissed out, stepping up to him with the silver light in her palm glistening as she conjured the infamous spear. "What's your excuse?"

"Lusine, I-"

"Don't try and use that silver tongue on me," She said quietly, resting the blade at his collarbone.

"I can only apologise for my mistakes," He replied, hands held up in surrender. "I can't go back and change the choices I made and neither can you. I regret it. I regretted it the moment you tipped over the edge of the Bifrost and disappeared into the void. I thought it was for the greater good. I didn't want you to become the monster parents scare their children with. But I regretted it. Heard your scream for weeks and weeks on end every time I closed my eyes. I can only apologise and beg that you forgive me." He drew in a shaking breath. "Lusine, please."

Lusine's fingers flexed around the spear for the briefest of moments before she let it dissipate into light once more, lips parted and eyes wet, matching the glossy blue she stared into.

The chance for response is gone in a flash when Steve, Tony and Thor return and take Loki into hostage, not questioning Lusine for even a second as she steps back and pushes her palms into her eyes, forcing the weakness away.

If they'd heard the way her heart wrenched as they took him away, they would have locked her up too.

-

-

Lusine found that his words consumed her thoughts for the entire journey back to the heli-carrier base.

In remembrance of betrayal, she wondered whether it was another one of his games, his honey-coated lies. Too good to be true. But if that were the reality, why did he not lead with his plea for apology? Would it truly be that his words were genuine?

A combination of those thoughts span in Lusine's mind as she pushed her face into her hands, staring at the floor with absent eyes as her mind took control.

Cutting into her vision came a set of boots and Lusine decided it polite to raise her head to greet the owner. Steve, still donning the stars and stripes, extended a hand towards her. Lusine took it and wasn't surprised to find his handshake firm and steady.

"You did good, kid," He said, still shaking her hand.

Lusine pulled her hand away as his gaze caught on the strings of black which lined them. "I haven't been called 'kid' in a very long time, but thank you, Captain," She replied, folding her hands behind her back.

"For your first mission, not bad," He said, carrying on talking though the conversation had clearly looked as if it were coming to its end.

Lusine smiled with him. "Beginners luck, I suppose," She commented, "Or maybe I'm just that good."

"Um, excuse me," Tony Stark chimed in, turning around to join in, pointing a finger at Lusine which she would have delighted in snapping clean off. "You just had a stern chat with your ex-boyfriend while we fought a literal God."

"Oh yeah?" A single eyebrow flicked up and her mouth shifted into the familiar snarl she'd worn for years. "If he really wanted to kill you, he would've. Consider yourself lucky that when you played with fire, you weren't burnt alive."

"And you would've done a better job?"

"I believe so."

"Prove it," He shot back.

"Brave words for a man without his armour." Lusine took a step forwards, blood rushing in her ears, fingers clenched into fists.

Steve's hand clamped down on her shoulder, his hand cold on the rising temperature of her skin. She knew she shouldn't hurt any of them if she really meant to stay, but the thought was tempting.

After shooting one final glare Tony's way, Lusine turned her body away from him and looked to Steve.

"If he's always this much of an arsehole, we're going to have a problem here."

-

1966 words
23.4.18
is lokine back?

disclaimer: although i've updated this three times in the last two days, i do intent to only update on mondays from this monday. other stories may be updated during the week, but this is going to be my main priority as of now. thanks x