"I may as well--you implied it yourself. You're a woman living alone in a dangerous city." A pause, before he took the dagger back and vanished it in a shimmer of greenish-yellow. "I've had to survive some very nasty places, and it tends to make one sleep lightly and armed."
A nightmare though... Loki wasn't really one for comfort.
And Loki should just go straight back to bed. He's tired, he's still healing, and now that he's identified the source of the noise, then there's no more need to trouble himself. He'll still sleep lightly, but that's the thing--he needs to sleep.
He's about to turn around to go do just that, when his curiosity gets the better of him. Stupid curiosity. "What was it about?"
"One of the superhero fights in the city. The sheer amount of death and pain that came through my hospital that day."
Just how mangled some of the people had been, she still sees them sometimes. She's not going to sugar coat it for him, he asked. She's just telling him, simple and matter of fact.
"Sounds like a thankless job." Loki crossed his arms, watching her again. "SO why do it? Why help people?" Because he was still puzzled by that. "I've been thinking about it and there's no clear benefit for you to do so."
"Sometimes it is." She shrugs. "Because I am able to. I invested my time in learning to save people, and maybe I'll save a future scientist or president. Or someone who has really wonderful kids."
"You might also just save another 'me'." Loki pointed out. "There's no guarantee it's worth it." Even if it didn't directly benefit her. "Why do you care?"
"Sentiment. It only gets you in trouble." Loki answered quickly, but said nothing more. He could be said to care, but only for a select few. Maybe it was just because he'd been hurt too many times.
"You survive for yourself." It was a strange conversation to be having. Loki was reminded once again that he really should be going back to the guest room and sleeping. But he was still curious. "There are....precious few, I would consider fighting for." And apparently interested in seeing where this conversation would take them both.
"If you'd lived my life, you would be too." He had pointed out that he had a heart earlier. He just guarded it carefully. "You leave yourself open to being hurt every day."
"Seems a fruitless quest." A pause. "You should too." Sleep that is. "You were working before encountering me, yes?" It didn't matter, except he was in her care for the moment.
"I don't like the odds." It was a half-lie, but it would serve. "And thus, you need sleep too." She had even less reserves than he did, likely. Humans were so fragile.
Letting the whim take him, Loki uncrossed his arms and moved towards her. Reaching out to place his hand against her forehead. To nudge her mind once more, influence what he could sense of happy memories. "Sleep, Dr. Christine Palmer. No more nightmares tonight."
And when he was done, Loki turned to head back to the guest room.
She agrees with him though, she does need her sleep. And then he surprises her, coming over and touching her. She can feel it again, the way her mind shifts, but this time it's calming. The way she looks at him it's obvious she's thankful.
And then he's gone and she's quick to move back down the hallway as well.
"Good night." It's said softly as she passes the guest room.
He's quick to fall back asleep, though his mind is turning with questions. Trying to figure out the puzzle that she is, and why he was responding as he was. It had to simply be that she was treating him like a person. Positive attention was still something new and that he craved.
Loki slept lightly, but he'll sleep late if allowed to.
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