Chapter 1: Lessons

(Song, My writing inspiration Linkin Park What I've Done)

She watched from the shadows as the prisoner spoke to director Fury. She listened intently to him speak to the director after the 'ant-boot' speech.

"Well let me know if 'real power wants a magazine or something." Fury said as he was leaving the chamber, leaving the prisoner alone in the round glass cell.

She watched Loki shake his head and smile broadly as he watched the director of SHIELD leave. The he settled himself on the small bench inside the glass and steel prison.

No one knew she was there. She wasn't supposed to be there really. But after the tesseract had destroyed the facility where she had been staying, they had no choice but to bring her along for the ride. Although Coulson had expressly forbid her to leave her quarters while this mission was active, no one had paid her much attention as she crept around the heli-carrier. She was a SHIELD asset nothing more than that. It's not like she would ever be one of the AVENGERS or even a field agent. She was something they studied, something they tried to use to their advantage, so she rarely listened when given orders. She tried her best to listen to the advice of her one friend, Phil Coulson, but this was just too interesting to stay away. SHEILD was not quite aware of all her abilities yet, and some things she had deliberately hidden from them. It was the not knowing what she was capable of that made all of them, including the counsel nervous. She was not sure herself where her abilities had come from, why she could do the things she could do or even the extent of her abilities, which is why she was here, lurking in the shadows.

Loki's abilities were quite similar to her own in many ways, though he had had several centuries to perfect what he could do. Gabriella watched him from her hiding spot, making every attempt to shield her presence from his keen senses. She was curious about him, why could she do some of the same things that this God of Mischief could do? She desperately wanted to talk to him, but knew that it wasn't as easy as walking up to him and asking him to reveal all so she could better understand herself.

Ella took a deep breath and concentrated on opening up her mind and feeling for the energy of the Asgardian. Once she felt his energy she pushed the tendrils of her own energy a little further attempting to probe gently at his mind without making him aware of her presence. Ella gasped in surprise as she touched lightly on Loki's subconscious. He was not alone in his own mind. There was another darker presence there with him and Ella pulled back slightly, forgetting her concealment efforts for a fraction of a second.

"Who is there?" Loki asked not bothering to look up from the floor or move in anyway.

Ella didn't answer him, instead she pushed her magic at him again, trying to get a better look into the Asgardian's mind.

"Show yourself to me." Loki demanded in a low sardonic voice.

Ella attempted to conceal herself even further in the shadows pushing her back against the hard steel of the heli-carrier wall. She could feel the cold of the metal and the vibration of the engine pulsating through her body like another gigantic heart beat. Then she felt the prickle of magic, not her own. Loki was trying to find her.

She tried to shield herself the best she could but she knew her magic was no match for Loki. If he wanted to find her, she would be found.

For the first time since his capture, Loki used his magic in an attempt to find the human he knew was there, lurking about in the shadows. It didn't take much of his extensive stores of power to locate her and it was a female he was surprised to learn. He heard a small gasp from the shadows to his left and he knew that his power had reached her. She seemed very small and fragile, nothing for him to concern himself with. He flipped his left hand in a small gesture, knowing the small amount of magic that would jolt her would send her running. Then she would be gone and he could be alone with his thoughts.

Ella attempted to hide the pain from the jolt of magic Loki had directed at her. "Be gone you foolish girl," she heard him mutter as the electric feel of the current began to intensify.

She closed her eyes and concentrated on trying to prevent his much stronger magic from penetrating her.

"ENOUGH!" She whispered forcefully when she realized that she could not shield herself from him. "Enough."

She heard Loki laugh from within the cell. "You have much to learn human. But you will not live long enough. Even if your life were not about to come to an abrupt end, your life span is much too short to even attempt to match my power, now leave me."

Ella felt his magic leave her and she let out a long breath she was unaware she had been holding. There was a strange feeling inside her, like some of his energy was still there, holding onto her. It was a very peculiar vibrating feeling. Slowly, she regained her equilibrium enough so that she was finally able to move again without vomiting. She felt more than a little disappointed. All she had learned was that Loki was not alone in his own mind and it seemed the shadow that resided within him had more control and far more power than even Loki himself. She was still no closer to understanding her own abilities and there was no way she was going to attempt to make contact with Loki again.

Feeling defeated yet again, Ella pushed herself away from the wall, not bothering to conceal herself from Loki as she made her way back to her room.

Loki watched her go from his prison. She looked to be no more than a child, but the magic she had used against him told him she was more than she appeared. Perhaps he would attempt to spare her when all was said and done and use her for a bit of amusement.