Pressure Valve - for Loki

[tasernanny]

That night circled around Phil's head for awhile. It was hard to forget the sight of Loki on his knees for a Dom who clearly did not know how to read the Asgardian. He thought about it each time he thought about going back to that club. Loki still full of defiance and the Dom full of bullshit trying to demand respect he hadn't earned.

He understood that Loki could be frustrating. Since the Asgardian had been banished to Earth he had been Phil's responsibility to help adjust to life here. Loki's magic was lessened but his attitude was the same. It had taken time to get the Prince to settle down, accept his fate and become... useful.

Loki was a brilliant strategist and good at deciphering codes. Around SHIELD he made for a gifted intelligence agent. Not always the best in the field but he had found himself a place among Team Delta. These days, he was only really trouble when Thor visited. Nothing seemed to push him back towards those early days like visits from Thor.

That was probably why Loki had gone to the club in the first place. Phil understood the need for release and a clear head when faced with something frustrating. What Loki got out of that night was probably not helpful. And Phil... wanted to help. He had always liked them bratty and willful.

So, he waited until the end of the day and stepped onto the elevator with Loki at just the right moment when the doors closed seconds behind them.

"I have a proposition," he said as the elevator descended. "If you're interested."

Comments

[cuttingremark]

There are days, the better days, where Loki doesn't think about Asgard at all. Days where he wakes up and just thinks of his next puzzle: a mission, a code, a clever prank, even a relationship. Something that keeps him in the present and makes him excited to continue moving forward. He's good at it, too, and he knows it. What's better is SHIELD knows it too and rewards him for it. More than money, he's recognized for his skills (skills often derided by Asgard.)

That's why Thor's visits bother him most, not that he'd say it. It isn't the man himself, but rather the thoughts that linger in his mind while he's there. Thoughts of golden spires and large, empty halls.

When Loki does think of Asgard, in the quiet moments after a successful mission debrief, in the elevator after Team Delta has joined him in laughter at his latest joke, even in his apartment after a terrible night out, the most terrifying thought comes in without any announcement.

I don't want to-

Loki has found that the only way to make those thoughts stop is to simply stop thinking all together, thus why he tried going to the club. Not that it did him any good. He's had fun there before, but that dom just reminded him of everything waiting for him back in Asgard: a bunch of blustering fools who demand respect without actually doing anything. There was no dance, no play, just an immovable wall. Rather than taking him out of his head he felt trapped inside it.

It's those thoughts Coulson interrupts as he enters the elevator. It's no secret that Loki didn't think much of the man at first. He saw the human as a glorified babysitter, but was pleasantly surprised to find in him open and willing to help the banished god acclimate to modern Midgard without any of the disdain Loki had expected. It is only that good will that has Loki's voice sounding more tired than snarky when he responds.

"And what sort of proposition is that?" Okay, still a little snarky. He is still Loki, after all.