favoriteanalyst: (thought that tumbles through your head)
Mobius ([personal profile] favoriteanalyst) wrote2021-09-03 10:52 pm

what if...I took a basic meme premise and made it fucky - for icasm

[He keeps things from Loki, of course.

Not the important things, the pertinent things. Everyone has their secrets, and no one is ever truly an open book. (Regardless of how well he knows Loki. Extenuating circumstances.) And while Loki has slowly gotten to learn more about how the TVA works, he isn't privy to every detail. He's genuinely curious sometimes. And maliciously curious at other times. Mobius tries to strike a balance, let him know or learn on his own the things he can, steer clear of the things he shouldn't.

So while he's Mobius' partner, something of a junior agent in his own right with several, several caveats, he also doesn't need to know about every aspect of his job.

It's harder when it's another Loki variant that comes across his desk. Sylvie is a point of...contention? A special case, that's for certain. Dangerous, yes, and well worth his involvement, but...different. Not, as such, a case at all anymore, not really. But this one's fairly cut and dry. He frowns when he looks through the casefile. Because Loki shouldn't be anywhere near this one.

Variant L1952 took a different turn after being picked up by Thanos. A mix of biding his time too long, the effects of the mind stone, some powerful persuasion, and a budding army of zealots - this one turned from desperate survivalist wannabe conqueror into a fullblown child of the Mad Titan. It's not pretty, the way things devolve for the variant from there, at least as far into the branch as they've been able to track. The trickiest part is how this one seems to elude their immediate grasp. He's slippery and powerful and needs another set of eyes to make a plan of action to find him and take him in with as little injury to the hunters as possible. The scepter is a tremendous artifact with a stone of great ability if used right (and he can see it now, a trophy in Ravonna's office, and the thought hurts more than he thinks it should), and even when Gamora and Nebula aren't around, or Proxima Midnight and the rest, there's still a Chitauri army to contend with.

It's the kind of thing where he realizes he could use Loki's insight on this, too. Not just for it being a Loki variant - Mobius has seen many come and go without issue before. There's a combination of who it is, and the circumstances surrounding him, and not to mention Thanos in play, that makes him realize that a little help might be prudent for expediency's sake.

He doesn't want to let Loki know. It's...delicate. The kind of thing that his Loki is still relatively fresh from, that might still bleed as an open wound. But Loki's a nosy little shit, and he has noticed a new case that he has decidedly not been specifically on, so there are questions. And he hates this. But. But.

Stonyfaced, he hands Loki the file.]
You're not gonna like it.
icasm: (if this was a dream)

[personal profile] icasm 2022-01-02 12:03 am (UTC)(link)
The being skewered part falls under the like this umbrella, Mobius.

[ He takes their entangled hands and brings them up to his mouth, kissing Mobius' hand. ]

I'm a little affronted that no one has insisted you learn to fight before now.
icasm: (says find a home)

[personal profile] icasm 2022-01-02 02:05 am (UTC)(link)
I suppose I should be thankful to this Winter Soldier. [ Does Loki know who that is? Not really. But he can't imagine a metal arm to the face would have done Mobius any favors in the 'living and breathing' department. ]

This isn't entirely your fault, you know. Lokis are dangerous. Mad ones even more so than usual. [ And now he's gone, to be food for Alioth. So it's... well. It's not fine, exactly, but it is no longer an active problem. ]
icasm: (you might pass out in)

[personal profile] icasm 2022-01-02 08:32 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Instinctively he's dismissive of the idea that he might have died, despite the honesty of the situation being closer to reality than he'd like.

Setting that aside for now, Loki frowns and wonders at the structure of the TVA that it just throws bodies at these sorts of problems.
]

Alright, [ he says eventually, because he doesn't want to argue and also doesn't see room where he can without going after all the things Mobius believes in. ]