Chapter One

Notes/Warnings: Some language, medical situations/gore, other Avengers characters. I don't know whether I'm going to make another chapter to this, I guess it just depends on whether people like it and if the mood strikes me. This is the first time I've written Loki fanfiction, so hopefully you like it. Thanks!

The ER was full of people. "Code seven, all available staff to the ER, I repeat, a code seven." Said a monotone voice from the nurse's station. Sophie pushed her dark hair back into a tight ponytail, looking around as she rushed to the front. "What's happening?" She asked her lead nurse, looking around. In the distance, she could hear the whine of ambulances and explosions. A terrorist attack?

The nurse nodded to the television. "Mass casualty situation. Not sure exactly what's happening, but we've got the first ten and they're three minutes out. Better get ready to triage, we've got more coming after that." She added, getting some blood bags ordered to be brought down.

Sophie nodded. The estimate was wrong, however, as a badly injured man was carted in. The EMTs were rushing, and she jogged to catch up with him. "What happened?" She asked, concerned. He seemed to be missing a good chunk of his arm, and the male was unconscious from blood loss. The EMTs handed him off. "We think rubble- not sure."

Then, they were gone again to transport more victims. She assigned him a yellow tag and cleaned his wound, looking confused. It seemed more like a bite, or a tear. Whatever was happening in the city, it was definitely big. And it was her responsibility to take care of now, along with the other staff.

The injured and dead continued in a steady stream all night. Men, women, children, no one was exempt. By midnight, they were all exhausted and tear-stained, as well as nearly covered in blood. Sophie was just about to go on her break when one last patient was brought in. The head nurse looked at her. "Can you take care of him please, Sophie? I'm sorry, I know you're tired. We all are." She added, wearily.

Sophie nodded. "Sure, Mary." She approached the bed and looked at him. The man was certainly awake, and odd looking. It didn't click with her who he was, she hadn't watched the news since the event started. A man in gold and green armor, handsome, and handcuffed. Beside him was…Tony Stark? She did a double take and swallowed hard. No wonder Mary had assigned her to this. "Uhm, hello Mr. Stark." She knew better than to ask many questions. "We'll take him to the security room and do an examination."

Loki arched an eyebrow, deciding to interject. "I suppose I don't get a say in that, do I, beautiful?" He said, in a low tone.

Stark chuckled. "Shut it, puny god." He added, laughing harder at his own joke.

Sophie looked at him a little oddly but took Loki's rolling bed and pushed it to the security room. It had huge plexiglass windows, a guard outside, and a door that locked on the outside. She walked over to him and sighed, surveying the damage. "Considering you're handcuffed to this thing and Tony Stark brought you in, I'm not going to ask what happened. I have to take your armor off, though. And since you're handcuffed to the bed, removing it might be a little bit tricky."

He smirked. "I don't normally complain about being stripped by a lovely nurse. However," He slid his wrist from the handcuff easily. "I'll handle things this time."

Her face flushed, and she scowled at him. "I can assign you to someone else. Edith, for example."

Loki arched an eyebrow and pulled off the chest piece of the armor, wincing. "Ah. alright…no jokes." He was trying to disguise the amount of pain he was in. "I may have broken a few ribs."

Sophie nodded and grabbed a medical chart. "X-ray is your next stop, then. Name?" She asked, picking up a pen and preparing to scribble.

He looked at her, removing his shirt slowly. "My name is Loki, prince of Asgard. I'm surprised you don't recognize me, miss."

She didn't even look at him, or his chest. After being a nurse for so long, she had started to tune everything out. "Alright…Loki of Asgard. Got it."

If Iron Man hadn't been the one to bring him in, she would have written him off as another crazy. Not that he probably wasn't anyways. "I haven't been watching the news. It's been a long day." After she scribbled a few more things down, she pushed his bed down to x-ray and left him there for nearly half an hour.

While he was gone, she worked in the morgue, helping to clear the backlog. It felt like her day was never going to end. When the results for his x-ray came back, she couldn't help but frown a little. Three broken ribs and the rest were definitely bruised. No wonder. His shoulder was dislocated too. Theoretically, he should have been screaming in pain…but he wasn't. Maybe he wasn't kidding about being from…elsewhere.

Sophie pushed the door open to his room and walked in, leaning over his bed. They were quite close. It wouldn't bother her if it had been someone else, but he really was really attractive. A flush started to cover her cheeks, and she fanned herself in an effort to fake being overheated. That seemed to amuse him.

"Are you warm?" He asked, smirking. "Perhaps you should seek out some water."

She shook her head and put a hand on his chest, frowning. "You're quite cold. Is that normal? I mean, if you were a person you would be dead at this temperature."

That seemed to trigger something inside him that was still a bit sore. "Well, I'm not a person." He snapped. "I'm fine. Just a little sore. I'd rather not be here if I can help it. Why don't you just send me on?"

Sophie rolled her eyes, setting his ribs. "You broke three ribs. Now I have to relocate your shoulder. You probably won't like this." She walked around to the other side of the bed and took his shoulder in one hand, and placed another hand at a very particular angle near his breastbone. "Take a deep breath. I'll do it on one."

He arched an eyebrow. "One?" Then she slammed his shoulder forward, causing him to let out a cry of pain. He wasn't prepared for that. "Damn! What the hell did you do that for?" He said, looking up at her grumpily.

She gave an innocent look, feeling a little mischievous in his presence. "It's actually easier if you don't tense your muscles. Surprise is helpful. Besides, it shouldn't hurt anymore. I have to go ask Mr. Stark if we can hold you here overnight, or if you'll be sent to…wherever, immediately." She was hoping to keep him for observation overnight, maybe her observation. If not, maybe she would run into him some other time. Moving quickly, she walked out and closed the door behind her, looking up. She had nearly run smack dab into Tony Stark. "Oh, hello!" She exclaimed, blushing a little as she moved away. Mr. Stark was a handsome man, but she also knew about his reputation as a playboy. "I was just coming to ask you about uh, that Loki of Asgard." She said, saying his name as though it was the title of an unfamiliar book. "I think it would be best if we kept him overnight for observation, but I think he may need to be restrained better. He broke three ribs, but he still seems mobile enough to be an escape risk."

Tony shook his head. "In that case, we'll just go." He opened the door and walked in. "Alright, Loki. Time to go." He took the pair of handcuffs from the bed and Loki stood, then Tony yanked his arms back again. That made Loki cry out in pain again, almost falling to his knees.

Sophie frowned and rushed back into the room, literally pushing Tony Stark out of the way. "You dislocated his shoulder again." She said, scolding the billionaire. "Hold on." She pushed it back into place, making Loki glare at both of them.

"If you are done playing tug of war with my shoulders, I would like to leave now," Loki said, grumpily. His expression softened, though when he remembered how she practically yelled at Stark. His expression said it all- he was clearly not used to that. It made Loki want to laugh, but he also appreciated her defense.

After a moment, he put his hands forward and let Stark handcuff him in the front instead. "Why don't I just promise not to escape," He said, wryly.

Tony grunted. "We're all just leaping to take your word for it. Let's go," He didn't hate Loki per say, but being here reminded him of how many lives Loki took. They were lucky there weren't more. "Thank you, miss. We'll call you if we need anything."

Sophie nodded. "Have a good day Mr. Stark, Loki." She still hadn't apologized for being a little sharp with him. Ah well. Maybe if she did see them again. It wasn't like she would mind seeing Loki. Even if he was kind of moody. As she walked out of the secure cell and to the lounge, several nurses gathered around, asking questions.

"Did he talk to you?"

"What did he say?"

"Is he as dangerous as he looked on television?"

She looked at them all, just putting on her normal tennis shoes. "I just want to go home. Why are you all so excited over this 'Loki'?"

Edith looked at her. "You don't know? He caused all of this, he was the one attacking New York City."

"Wait. He was the one who attacked New York?" Sophie's face paled, as she felt a little dizzy. The one who caused all of this. And she had been nice to him, even had a little crush on him! "Oh, my god. I think I'm going to call it a night. See you all tomorrow." She added, walking out. All she needed now was a stiff drink and the world's longest nap.