Of Angels and Demons

Of Angels and Demons: Loki/Steve One-Shot
Disclaimer: I own none of these characters.
Spoilers: None


The black sheet of sky was spotted with bright stars over a lifeless stretch of ground save for the growing plants and a lone man. The man stood in the center of four intersecting dirt roads, a crossroads, and waited as the cold night air swirled around him. He was tall and muscular with neat blonde hair and blue eyes. His face was stern and serious as he stood there, unmoving, as if he were waiting for something especially important. He appeared to be willing to wait for days if he had to.

The man remained there for hours as the crescent moon moved across the sky. The time had flown into the early hours of the morning and he didn't move an inch. It was almost 3 AM when he felt a presence appear soundlessly behind him. He turned around swiftly, as if he'd barely moved, and faced the intruder.

A pair of narrow red eyes stared back at him but he watched as the color that consumed the whole of his eyes receded until they became a normal human green. The other man had long, shoulder-length black hair and a tall, lean build, taller than the man who had been waiting.

"I was trying to ignore you," the black-haired man said in a smooth, almost soothing English accent, "but it became clear that you weren't going to leave. I can't have you scaring off my business, angel."

An audible ruffle of feathers reached the other man's, the demon's, ears and he shifted uncomfortably. There were no birds in sight but if one had looked down in that moment, the blonde man's shadow would've shown a pair of wings sprouting from his back even though they weren't visible on his physical form. However, in the next moment they were gone again as if they'd never been there.

"I have something to discuss with you, Loki."

Loki rolled his eyes. "I would never have guessed. Make it quick, Steven. I have people to see, deals to make."

Steve narrowed his eyes and clenched his fists at his sides. His stance was rigid as if it pained him to be there. Loki watched him carefully and a smirk spread over his face at his discomfort. His green eyes sparkled with malicious amusement.

"Oh," Loki said, almost breathlessly. "I never thought I'd see the day."

Steve's eyes widened by a fraction. "What?"

"You're here to make a deal."

Steve nodded shortly, staring down at his shoes.

Loki clapped his hands together as if in prayer, which was laughable, and looked down at the broken angel with a twisted sort of glee. "Your angel friends have no idea you're here, do they? You, Steven, are the sweetest little gift that could've ever fluttered down to my crossroads."

"I haven't even explained the deal," Steve said through gritted teeth as he glared up at Loki.

Loki parted his hands, keeping his arms in the air like a magician after a completed trick. "You say that like it matters. You could just want to borrow a few dollars and it would still be the best deal I would ever make."

"What would I need with human money?" Steve asked, his brow creasing in confusion.

Loki sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Not the point." He paused for a moment to regain his snake-like composure. "But, while we're on the subject, what exactly are you after that would force you to resort to my help, angel? I would love to hear it."

"I assume you know of the upcoming war?" Steve replied, his bearing like that of a soldier at attention.

"Oh, the war, the apocalypse," Loki said dramatically. "Of course I know of it. You'd be hard-pressed to find a supernatural being that doesn't."

"I'd like to make a deal to protect the humans."

Loki appeared shocked. He stared at Steve as if he'd lost his sanity on his way down from Heaven. "I am never one to deny a deal no matter how ridiculous but why would you ever put your life on the line for those stupid sacks of meat?"

Steve scowled, clearly tired of Loki. "You know why. They're my father's most loved creations."

"And where is your father now? Where is God as the world crumbles?"

"I know my father is coming back."

"Ever the dutiful son," Loki said, staring at Steve the way an adult would look at a small child. "This is a big deal, Steven. The humans are collateral damage. You know that we don't care what happens to them. What do you plan to give me in return to make this deal worthwhile?"

Steve stole a deep breath and looked Loki levelly in the eye. "I will give you me."

Loki's eyebrows shot up as his smirk returned to his face. "You? Now, why would I want you?"

"You know how important I am!" Steve almost pleaded.

"I do. The reigning leader since your father left you all alone." Loki paused, pretending to think it over even though Steve knew he would take the deal. "Okay, angel. I accept. No humans will come to harm. This war will remain between us."

Steve held out his hand to seal the deal but Loki only laughed. "What?"

"That's not how demon deals are made. It's a little more personal."

Steve was pondering what Loki could possibly mean when the crossroads demon reached out and grabbed his shirt with both hands. Steve's hands shot up and his eyes widened as Loki pulled him in until they were mere inches apart. He looked into Loki's eyes and watched them turn a blood red again just before he pressed his lips to Steve's.

His blood ran cold as Loki continued to kiss him and grew even colder when he realized that he wasn't fighting back. The air around them whipped and Steve knew the deal had successfully been struck. He tried to move back but he couldn't. Steve was paralyzed as Loki's left hand entangled in his hair while his right hand crept up to rest on his chest. Unsure what to do with his hands, he kept them tightly at his sides until Loki finally pulled away.

Loki's eyes were still as red as Steve imagined Hell would look as the demon glanced down at Steve's chest. Steve looked down as well in time to see Loki pull his hand back and plunge it into him, breaking through the fleshy exterior to the angel within. He cried out in agony, a sound so painful that if any human had been around for miles, their ears would've bled. He fell to the ground on his knees as Loki continued to search inside his chest cavity.

"Loki!" Steve struggled to say through the pain. "What are you doing!?"

"You gave yourself to me. I'm just insuring you don't fly off. Ah." Steve could feel Loki's fingers close around something inside of him before he ripped his arm back out.

He collapsed on the ground like a puppet whose strings had been cut and rolled onto his back, clenching his teeth in pain. Loki stood over him, holding a ball of the purest light he'd ever seen. The demon marveled over it while Steve stared up at it in horror.

"No. LOKI, NO. THIS WASN'T PART OF THE DEAL!"

Loki looked away from the light to Steve and smiled. "You're very wrong. You said I could have you and this is most definitely a part of you."

Steve turned his head to see his shadow, wings spread wide, and watched as they began to wither as the feathers fell like leaves in the fall. They didn't just disappear from view, Steve could feel that they were gone. He pushed himself to his feet, resigned and despaired, and noticed that Loki had produced a small vial on a string that he was pouring the light into. Loki capped it with a satisfied grin and slipped the string over his head.

"I'll just keep your grace with me. Everything that makes you an angel, in my hands. How does that make you feel?"

Steve looked up at Loki, noticing blankly that his eyes were green again. "It doesn't."

Loki wrapped an arm around Steve's shoulders. "You know, I think mortality suits you. We're going to have a lot of fun, you and me."

Steve didn't get a chance to respond before they both disappeared from the crossroads. The dirt was left undisturbed as if no one had been there, except for a few loose white feathers being carried by the wind.