Violent Daylight: Chapter 4

Darcy laid on her bed as her mind swam with thoughts, all competing to be the one that she focused on. Loki was so damaged and she desperately wanted, with all her being, to fix him. No one deserved to be that broken. Then a thought reached the front of her mind, a memory she had long since forgotten.

It was a hot day at Matthew High, the sun burned in the sky, letting all the students below know its dominance over them. Darcy glanced up at the blue sky, watching as a v of birds flew towards a new home. She was sitting on a long wooden bench in the middle of the school yard, students all around her, sitting in groups and talking about the latest scandal.

Her best friend Maia was talking about a fascinating book she was reading but Darcy couldn't seem to focus on the conversation. She couldn't stop looking at the tall, dark footballer who was gazing over at her. Her breath caught in her throat as she saw him leave his friends and start walking over in her direction. Jesse was the most popular boy at school and, as much as Darcy hated to admit it, she was captivated by him.

Darcy tried to look back at Maia as Jesse came closer to them, his strides lengthening as he approached. Finally he stopped in front of the two girls and cleared his throat. Maia stopped talking and Darcy glanced up at him meekly, trying to look as demure as she possibly could. "So, Darcy, I was wondering…" Darcy could feel her heart pounding harder with every word he spoke. "Would you like to go to Prom with me?" Jesse finished, his smile almost more blinding than the sun.

Darcy took a slow intake of breath so she would not seem eager. "That sounds great, Jesse" She smiled as sexily as she could as his grin widened.

"Cool." He replied as he turned on his heels and returned to him leering friends. Darcy turned back to Maia who sat with a bewildered expression. "I'm going to the prom with Jesse!" Darcy squealed, unable to contain her joy. How many girls could say they were going to their prom with the most popular boy in school? Maia smiled at her but Darcy could tell something was bugging her.

"What? I know you've got something on your mind." Darcy stated, her tone cynical.

"Well, I just think its a little out of the blue, that's all." Maia answered, avoiding Darcy's eyes. "I'm sure I'm just being over cautious." She added when she saw Darcy's expression darken. "I'm happy for you, hun. I mean, he is Jesse Stevens!" Maia threw her arms around Darcy who's smile returned to her face as she hugged Maia back, ignoring the nagging voice in her head that said Maia was onto something.

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Loki had risen from the couch, still murmuring furiously about his encounter with Darcy. He slicked back his dark hair as he padded over out of the living room. He walked down a long hall towards the room that had be shown to him as the bathroom. He glanced sideways as he passed the door that had Darcy's name written across the front in a deep purple paint. He paused to inspect it and suddenly he was overwhelmed with feeling of happiness.

There were a million hurried thoughts racing through his head that weren't his own. He channeled his mind into reading those thoughts and, much to his surprise, he was able to hear the thoughts more clearly. His mind puzzled over why he was able to do so. His ability to read thoughts was connected to his magic and that had been ripped away in his banishment. The only explanation was another mind being so powerful and the thoughts so potent that they projected themselves into his.

He shook away his thoughts and re-focused on the other thoughts pulsing through his head. He could see, what he assumed to be, a Migardian schoolyard filled with smiling teens, all buzzing with gossip. He scanned the scene and saw a small brunette girl sitting directly beside him. She was talking about a boy called Jesse Stevens. He assumed this was this school's equivalent of Thor by the way she was fawning over him. He could hear his voice, or the voice of the girl who's memory this was, chirping about a ballgown and various hairstyles.

Loki tried to pull his mind away from this trivial memory but his hold on it, or, should he say, its hold on him, was so tight that he couldn't rip him mind away. He had to stand frozen to his spot, experiencing the memory as if it was his own.

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It was two months later and Darcy was standing in her room peering into her full length mirror. She was dressed in her floor length green dress that showed off her curves in all the right ways. "You look beautiful, Darcy." Her mother gushed as she raised her hand to her mouth. Her beaming smile peered through her fingers and a camera dangled from her other hand.

Darcy turned to her mother and grinned as she slid down onto he bed beside her. "Let me do your hair, darling." Her mother instructed as Darcy shifted on the bed so she was facing away from her. She then began to pin Darcy's freshly curled hair into a loose bun, letting strands fall out delicately. Once she had finished Darcy then turned to her mirror again and her smile widened even more.

Darcy stepped out of the limo she had shared with her friends and began to make her way up to her school gym. The bath was framed with tea light candles and reminded Darcy of a fairytale. She gently lifted the skirt of her dress as she climbed up the stairs and into the gym. For some reason Jesse had arranged to meet her inside which, Darcy would admit, was a little strange but she was so happy that she didn't care.

She walked through the arch decorated with roses and into the gym. Her eyes widened as she looked around and couldn't recognise what she saw. This was no longer the place she had ran laps or sprained her ankle in an unfortunate volleyball game, it was her fairytale. There were small tables in a corner, each one decorated with a small candle burning brightly. All over the walls were fairy lights which bathed the room in a magical glow. Darcy twirled around, taking in the overall effect and laughing happily.

She stopped twirling as she saw Jesse standing in the centre of the room, laughing with Lara. Lara, the girl who boys loved and girls feared. The girl who had pulled down her skirt in third grade to humiliate her. The girl who had always gotten a slightly better mark but had shoved it in her face. Her unwanted rival.

Lara spotted Darcy and a sneer spread across her face. She said something in Jesse's ear and then traipsed over to where Darcy was standing, her long gold hair caressing over her shoulders and the top of her deep red dress. She swung her hips as she walked making all the boys gawk at her and the girls fume.

She reached Darcy's spot and place a hand on her hip while inspecting her perfectly manicured nails on her other hand. "Hey Darcy" She started, false warmth dripping through her musical voice. "I saw you looking over at my date, see him" She pointed over at Jesse who winked back at her. Lara returned a wink and turned around to Darcy again. "You didn't actually think that he liked you did he? His friends dared him to ask you and I, being his real date, encouraged him to. You are just a joke, you are nothing." With that Lara grinned and spun back to Jesse and waltzed back to him and wrapped her arms around his neck.

Darcy could feel her heart plummet to the floor. How could she have been so stupid! Why would Jesse have wanted to go with her when he could have Lara, she was better than her in every way. Darcy felt a small tear fall on her cheek as she ran through laughing students to the exit, anxious to get home, to curl into a ball and cry forever.

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Loki could feel an anguished sadness from deep within Darcy. Even remembering those events from so long ago she felt the same pain she had felt then. Loki couldn't help feelings of pity begin within him as she cried. Angrily he pulled himself away from the thoughts and cursed himself for being so weak, even inwardly. He shook his head and pushed away Darcy's feelings and focused back on his own thoughts as he continues walking down the hall to the bathroom.

As he walked he convinced himself that the feelings of pity had come from Darcy herself as she must've pitied herself in that situation. He opened the door of the bathroom and started running the cold water tap and cupping the water in his hands. He moved his head down to the sink and splashed the water over his face, ignoring the voice within him telling him his true feelings of compassion for the girl that was so similar to him yet so foreign.