Twenty Questions

"Isn't it obvious? We need to find a power source for the TemPad."

You thought about it for a moment and quickly realised that Sylvie's words rang true; a Timedoor was your only way out of this apocalypse. You nodded and looked around to search for a good place to start your endeavour when you suddenly noticed a dark shadow overhead. Without thinking you pushed Sylvie out of the way and only a half second later there was a small crater where she had stood. She stumbled to regain her balance and when your eyes met you saw a stunned expression on her face.

You wondered if she had expected you to let her get crushed by a space rock and if that is how she would treat you and Loki if the roles became reversed. She shook her head as if to clear it from unwanted thoughts and pointed at a nearby truck to seek cover from the constant asteroid rain. As soon as you were relatively safe Loki turned towards Sylvie with a smirk and casually asked "How come you stopped trying to kill us?" She rolled her eyes and you swore you saw a flash of vulnerability on her face before she schooled her expression.

"If you die, the TemPad is lost," she responded dryly and you desperately hoped that she had more reason to keep you alive since Loki was the only one hiding an important object with his magic. Sylvie peered out from behind your cover and then suggested taking shelter in a shack not too far in the distance. Loki instantly reached for your hand and you were glad that the dim lighting around you was covering up your blush. He glanced at you for confirmation and when you gave him a resolute nod he started running towards the hut as fast as possible while allowing you to keep up.

You heard asteroids rush past and you were half convinced you wouldn't make it when you finally reached the door and Loki immediately pushed you inside. Sylvie followed and all three of you were leaning against the shelves to steady your erratic breathing. She glanced at you but when you smiled she averted her eyes as if to hide the emotions displayed in them and turned towards Loki.

She rested her hands on his neck and you gasped when you saw strands of her green magic flowing into his skin. You remembered what had happened to Hunter B-15 when she got enchanted and you felt worry rise up your throat at the thought of having to deal with a potentially murderous Sylvie by yourself. Before you could try and stop her Loki's eyes flew open and he pushed her away with a snarl. "That's rather low, don't you think?" he asked incredulously and reached into his sleeves to threaten her with his daggers. She only scoffed and unsheathed her sword and moved into a fighting stance opposite him.

You looked between them and for a moment the heavy atmosphere inside the small room felt thick enough that you could cut it with a knife. "Enough!" you yelled at the top of your lungs and to your credit both of them turned to you with wide eyes, "Trying to kill each other every five seconds is not doing us any favours right now." You gave them the sternest look you could muster and you sighed with relief when Sylvie lowered her weapon.

"Fine. You have a point," she mumbled and you almost laughed at the adorable frown on her face. Loki put his daggers away and when he smiled softly at you your heart fluttered in your chest. Sylvie groaned and added with a sharp grin "I'm going along with this for now but if you get in my way, I will kill you. This plan is years in the making and you will not ruin it for me." You nodded in understanding and decided that there was no time like the present to try and sate your curiosity. You asked Sylvie how her powers of enchantment worked and to your surprise she smiled lightly and started explaining them.

"I reach into someone's mind and make them believe that my thoughts are theirs. They usually don't remember anything afterwards," she said and you were amazed by anyone having such an ability. "Why did it not work on Loki?" you asked and you immediately regretted the question as her expression darkened significantly. She grimaced and lowered her voice as if to avoid the demigod overhearing and replied "Certain minds have mental defences that I cannot breach."

Loki smiled proudly and you laughed at the annoyed look on Sylvie's face. "Maybe you should've tried enchanting me," you suggested with a wink while internally hoping that she would not actually attempt to do it. She chuckled and let sparks of green magic fly through the air between you without making any effort to touch you. "You are the most reasonable of all TVA people I've had to deal with, taking your mind away would be a shame," she said and you heard Loki scoff in disbelief next to you. You pointed out that she was still willing to kill you to achieve her goal but she didn't bother responding and instead peeked out the window to assess the situation.

You followed her gaze and you could faintly make out a small town on the horizon. Considering you were in dire need of electricity it seemed like the most promising destination and the three of you started walking towards the houses in the distance. The asteroid shower had lessened a bit but you knew that this was merely the calm before the storm and that several large meteors were headed straight for Lamentis. You put yourself between Loki and Sylvie to avoid any physical altercations and you were pleased to note that both seemed intent on behaving for now.

"Why are you even working with the time police?" Sylvie asked and when Loki didn't immediately respond she barked out a humourless laugh and added "You don't even know, do you? You have no plan and just rush in without thinking." You snorted quietly and thought to yourself that she wasn't entirely incorrect with her assessment. Loki frowned and started arguing that Sylvie's grand idea of throwing the TVA into disarray and ultimately destroying it as an institution wasn't exactly well thought out either. "It would be much more sensible to take the power and rule the TVA yourself," he declared and you couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at him.

You shook your head and mumbled "Yeah, because that went so well last time", clearly referring to his failed attempt at ruling Midgard. Loki gave you a betrayed look and Sylvie actually laughed out loud at that and it sounded way more genuine than previous times. "You're supposed to be on my side," Loki pleaded and you felt a stab of something painful in your heart. You crossed your arms and looked at him with a defiant look in your eyes, "I don't even know if you are on my side." His silence was more of an answer than any string of words could have been.