Closed RP w/ Bruce

[you_have_heart]

Pain. Pain and loss, these were the only thing Loki was registering. The All-Father had thought he was taking pity on his adopted son when he stripped him of his magic and cast him here, many Aesir agreed. Many agreed and thought it was to lenient of the All-Father. So to appease them he had ordered his mouth sewn shut. Only an act of pure mercy and compassion could remove them. He had not been stripped of his voice, but any vocalization vibrated the strings and caused him more pain.

Some thought it was still to merciful, even as he lay on the floor of the grand hall, humiliated and bleeding, but the All-Father did no more before casting him back down to Earth.

So there he lay, in a dark, dirty alley somewhere in a large city, still in pain and bleeding, wondering when a mortal would come by, realize who he was, and kill him on the spot. The All-Father thought to teach his younger son the same lesson his older had learned among the mortals but he knew different. He would either be killed on sight or found by SHIELD.

At this point he didn't know which he preferred.

Comments

[you_have_heart]

It was slow, and Loki found he was being dragged more than he was actually walking, but eventually he felt a warmth envelop him. A soft light and the muffling of the sounds of the city behind them told him they must have found some sort of shelter.

[aggravated]

Here, at least, he could manage to get transportation... to where? Bruce bit his lip as he looked at Loki, thinking as quickly as he could. There was no way they could go back to Stark Tower, even if he would need medical supplies to help with this. A hotel?

A hotel. Tucked into his wallet was a credit card Tony had put with a link into its own, well supplied bank account under Bruce's current alias - David Bixby. It would give him a clean room, privacy, and he could come and go without too much trouble, he hoped.

He almost said stay here but knew Loki couldn't go anywhere in this state or he would hardly have been laying in an alley. "I'm going to arrange a place for us to go and a way to get there."

[you_have_heart]

Loki continues to just stare at Bruce as he speaks, only half registering what he was saying. He gave a small, loose nod, at least showing Bruce he knew that he was being spoken to.

[aggravated]

Bruce vanished, briefly, to call a cab to their location and to make an arrangement at a nearby hotel. It was only about then that he realized he was thinking about saving and healing an enemy, a crazed war criminal.

No. He was just making sure Loki lived to be taken in by SHIELD. Least that was what Bruce told himself as he waited, pacing.

[you_have_heart]

Loki's eyes followed him as he paced. Much as he had done when Loki was held in the Helicarrier the second time the doctor was here, seemingly only wanting to help despite the fact that they had tried to kill each other only a short while ago. It puzzled Loki to the point that he almost asked him why.

The painful tug quickly reminded him to keep his lips together.

[aggravated]

Bruce looked to Loki, crouching enough to pull the scarf away and look at the leather piercing Loki's lips. How... could anyone do this to another person? He didn't touch, didn't dare touch, knowing how painful it would be. He would numb Loki before he tried to remove them, treat it for infection, but he couldn't exactly bandage the wounds... tape perhaps.

[you_have_heart]

Loki shrunk away from Bruce when he took the scarf away, afraid he would try and touch whatever was holding his lips together. When he saw that he wasn't going to he relaxed somewhat.

A yellow car pulled up to the curb.

[aggravated]

The scarf was replaced and Bruce stood up, taking up Loki's arm again to bring him back to his feet. "I have somewhere we can go," he said as he worked Loki slowly to the taxi, knowing this was going to be difficult when they got to the hotel.

[you_have_heart]

Hesitant does not even begin to cover how Loki felt about getting into the cab. It seemed small and enclosed and he did not like the idea of being in a small enclosed place right now.

But then there was the problem of him not having energy to refuse Bruce's gentle guidance. So he got in the back of the cab and curled up on the far side from the open door.

[aggravated]

Bruce told the driver where to go, watching Loki with concerned eyes. What am I doing? I should be on the phone with SHIELD right now.

Another part of him whispered he was a doctor, and Loki looked pale, gray, and his mouth was sewn shut. It needed to be taken care of first.

They got to the hotel and Bruce carefully levered Loki out, moving into the lobby and settling him into a chair before going to check in. He could see the woman looking over at Loki in confusion and he said quietly, "my brother. He's not doing so well."

It earned him a look of sympathy as he well guessed it would. He checked in before getting Loki again and getting into their hotel room. Two beds, clean, simple. For now, it was all he needed as he got Loki onto the bed.

[you_have_heart]

Loki was quiet happy to get out of the cab. He sat where Bruce put him and got up when needed to get to the hotel room.

The bed felt absolutely amazing to his sore...everything. He had not lain in anything so comfortable since his fall from the Bifrost.

[aggravated]

"You can fall asleep here," Bruce said as he looked over his patient, "because I have to go back to Stark Tower to get medical supplies. I'll be back in about half an hour."

He wondered how likely he was to find Loki still here in half an hour, because the god was crafty.

The god currently looked like death warmed over. Maybe he would be.

[you_have_heart]

Loki was already falling asleep when Bruce started talking. He vaguely registered what was said before passing into a fitful, dreamless sleep. Even unconscious he found no relief from the pain.

He woke, sweaty and wide-eyed when Bruce reentered the room.

[aggravated]

Nightmares. Bruce frowned as he walked over, sitting on the other bed, dropping a large bag at his feet. "...Just me, for whatever comfort that is. You're in a hotel on Earth."

[you_have_heart]

It didn't actually calm him down any knowing Bruce specifically was there, rather that there was someone that had no active intent to harm him there. His eyes narrowed somewhat, but his breathing would not slow down.

[aggravated]

"I have my medical supplies." He nudged the bag with the edge of his heel. "Other than your lips, where are the worst of your injuries? Just point, pat, whatever is necessary."

[you_have_heart]

Loki shook his head. Mostly it was just bruising now, nothing he would not heal on his own.

He tried to sit up in the bed. It was slow, but eventually he was leaning against the headboard.

[aggravated]

So the lips were the worst of it. Bruce put his bag on the bed beside Loki, deciding what the easiest way to do this was. He took to the other side, leaning against Loki's thigh as he studied the damage. "First thing, I'm going to snip them to make it easier to work them out of the wounds. Then we're going to soak your lips to make it easier to get them out."

[you_have_heart]

Loki only nodded, wondering if Bruce could even cut the strings. Was he really doing this out of compassion, or some strange sense of duty? Could the latter could for the All-Father's enchantments?

Either way he balled the sheets in his fists, reading himself.

[aggravated]

Bruce pulled a scalpel from his bag, freeing it from the plastic before looking Loki in the eye. "Don't move, even if this starts to hurt. Understand?"

[you_have_heart]

Loki gave a single nod and griped the sheet tighter. He closed his eyes as the scalpel got closer, steeling himself for the pain that was sure to come.

[aggravated]

Bruce worked very slowly, using the scalpel's incredibly sharp edge to work with exquisite care. The leather parted beneath the edge, but he paused as he swore there was a flicker of light as he did so. Bruce blinked once, then shook his head. No, just seeing things.

He worked to cut each one, careful not to slice the lips, until the last one parted.

[you_have_heart]

Loki let out a shuddering sigh when the first string was cut. It hurt, it hurt almost as much as when they were put in, but the fact that they were coming out was...

Well, when he came to his senses more he would say it was demoralizing, having a mortal take pity on him like that. In the moment the only thing he could feel was relief.

When the last was severed a shudder escaped from his lips as they parted for the first time. Quietly, and despite the bit of blood that began flowing because of the movement, he whispered

"Thank you."

[aggravated]

It was a surprisingly human whisper coming from the god he knew as completely insane, a murderer. "You're welcome," Bruce said back quietly. "We'll soak the wounds to get them to release the leather more easily and I'll cut the strings so I have the shortest amount to pull out. I brought some suture glue with me to close each wound."

He pulled out a small syringe, flicking it lightly. "I brought a pain killer to make sure this is as painless as possible."

[you_have_heart]

Loki nodded again, not daring to speak again. If the other wanted to kill him he would have done so by now. He sat there quietly, letting Bruce work.