You groaned when your alarm started blaring the next morning. As you were fumbling for it to turn it off, you heard a chuckle coming from the chair beside your bed. You shot up in surprise at hearing another voice in your room, drawing the emergency repulsor that lived under your pillow automatically. It took a moment to relax, to realize that it was Loki, your boyfriend, guard, and babysitter. Loki chuckled as you deactivated the repulsor. You were just glad you hadn't blasted him first and asked questions later. That's what Tony would have had you do. You glared at him for laughing as you shut off your alarm.

"I wasn't expecting you to still be here," you explained sheepishly as you stashed the repulsor back under your pillow where it belonged.

"Twenty-four hour guard, darling," Loki reminded you with a chuckle as you sat up properly, your blanket pooling in your lap. "Let's try this again," he continued with a smirk. "Good morning, darling," he greeted you overly pleasantly, a smirk on his face at the contrast of being greeted with a repulsor aimed at his face. "I surmise by the early hour that we are heading to your school today? It will be interesting to see a human school," he mused.

"You're coming to school with me?" you asked him incredulously as you climbed out of bed and stretched. You never had guards at school and you couldn't imagine Loki actually coming there with you.

Loki chuckled again. "Must I define 'twenty-four hour guard' for you again, my dear?" he teased.

"I didn't think that extended to inside the actual school," you admitted. "No one has ever followed me into the school building, just dropped me off at the door." You wondered why security was upped so much for this threat. There had been threats before, what made this one so special?

You turned to Loki again. He had risen from the chair he had spent the night in, probably to see what you were doing. "Twenty-four hour surveillance does not include watching me get dressed," you informed him firmly. You weren't negotiating on that one. You shoved him bodily out of your bedroom, into your sitting-room and shut the door firmly behind him.

He mock-protested at the treatment, but he was laughing the entire time, so you knew he didn't mean it. "How am I to guard you, if I cannot see you?" he complained from the other side of the door in a mock-whine.

You heard his laughter and couldn't help laughing too. This was a great way to start your Monday morning. "You'll find a way," you informed him through your giggles. You managed to brush your teeth, do your hair, and get dressed in record time. You didn't want to see what the bored trickster would come up with to 'guard' you. You checked your tie in the mirror to make sure you had managed to tie the stupid thing correctly, double checked your hair to make sure it was pretending to behave for five minutes, and finally opened the door to the sitting-room to see Loki standing right on the other side, dressed in his battle armor. "See, I can survive ten minutes without you," you informed him dryly.

"So it seems," he replied warmly and offered you his hand. "Shall we?"

"I just need my-" you were going to say 'school bag', but you noticed that Loki was carrying it already. You reached for it, but he refused to hand it over. "Loki, I need that," you protested, trying to reach past him to get it.

"Of course, darlin, that is why I am carrying it," he replied, quite logically. You sighed and took his hand.

"You are a creature made entirely of silliness," you informed him as you walked from your suite hand-in-hand.

He laughed, a big booming laugh usually more fit to his brother. "Mischief and chaos, love, not silliness," he corrected.

"I'm not seeing much difference," you replied and stuck your tongue out at him.

You were surprised to see Tony at your table when you entered the room with your plate of breakfast courtesy of Helen. Tony had been working so much lately that you felt like you barely saw him. You took your seat at the table with him, while Loki sat nearby. "Morning, Uncle Tony," you greeted him as you slid into your seat. He gave you a sleepy greeting in return. You weren't entirely sure it was English. Or a word.

"I'm going to bed as soon as I finish eating. I probably won't be here when you get back. We're all running super long shifts right now without a whole lot of downtime. Your guard is taking you to school and will stay with you all day. It's been arranged with the school. Don't try to argue about this, Kat," he wouldn't have accepted the argument, so you didn't even pretend. Besides, you felt bad for him with how exhausted he was. You weren't going to make it worse by making him worry over you too.

"Fine," you replied and actually meant it. It wasn't worth the fight that you were perfectly safe in school. Besides, you guard was Loki and you enjoyed his company, which was a good thing as he was your boyfriend.

"I promise, I'm getting you a car for your birthday." It sounded like a nonsequitor, but you saw where the connection had been. You wouldn't have to walk to school once he bought you the car. Besides, he'd been promising for months.

"That's fine, I can walk. It's not that far," you reminded him. The school really wasn't that far and you were perfectly capable of walking. You finished your breakfast quickly, though. You didn't have time for a leisurely breakfast if you had to walk to school. "Get some sleep," you bid him as you got up to take your plate back to Helene.

You went straight to the closet to put on your coat and shoes, knowing Loki would catch up with you before you could even think about leaving without him. You did take your bag from him this time, despite his protests. "I carry this," you told him firmly. "I'll explain as we walk," you added quickly before he could protest. He inclined his head and opened the door for you. He strolled next to you as began the walk to school.

"You said you would explain," he prompted when you didn't immediately start talking.

"You can't act like my boyfriend while you're doing guard duty at the school," you explained to him bluntly. Sometimes it was better to be blunt with Loki. He wasn't from Earth and there were things he didn't know and this time in particular it was better to make sure he knew. "It's one thing at the tower, it's another out here. The school is letting you come as my guard. They will kick you out if they think we're dating. I'm serious, Loki. I don't want to have a different guard and the school will forcibly kick you off of guard duty if they even get a hint that this is more than a guard/guarded relationship." You tried to impress upon him how serious you were being, how much this meant, how important this really was. You prayed he would understand.

"I understand, Lady. I shall be on my best behavior," he replied formally. You could tell from his formality that he would do as you said.

"Thank you." You walked side by side chatting about books and the small shops you passed on the way until you got about a block out from the school. You nodded to Loki, the signal that you had to be good. Loki took your meaning, shifting from boyfriend to guard in one fluid movement. It wasn't even a movement, it was a shift in body language. He let you get a step ahead of him, so he was shadowing you, just off to your left, in perfect bodyguard position. You knew as much from training with the supers. You let him open the school door for you and check the entryway for threats before you followed him in. You knew how this whole guard thing worked, even if you'd never had to have one inside the school before. You headed to the office first, so Loki could get cleared with the school.

You gave a brilliant smile to the receptionist. You'd learned charm from your Uncle and you use it to your advantage, especially in situations like the one you found yourself in. "Thank you for allowing me to have a guard in school today. The Avengers, and Uncle Tony in particular, appreciate your flexibility," you told the receptionist. You handed her the note Tony had given you explaining the full situation to the school.

"Of course dear, he just needs to sign in," she indicated the sign-in sheet on the front counter. Loki picked up the pen there and wrote in the information carefully. You prayed she wouldn't read it before you got out of the office. Luck was not with you that morning. "Loki Odinson?" she asked, disbelieving. Loki was claiming 'Odinson' as people knew Thor. "I need your real name," she glared at him. He pulled out a wallet from somewhere you didn't see and handed her his ID. She couldn't find any flaw in it and reluctantly handed it back. "Thank you, Mr...Odinson." She didn't sound convinced, but at least you could leave the office.

You escaped as soon as was seemly.

"I should have worn the helmet," Loki was still standing in his guard position as he walked behind you down the hall to your first class, but you still heard his voice as a whisper in your ear. Of course you had because of the magical god.

"That would have been entertaining." Loki didn't always wear the horned helmet as part of his armor. It depended on how much danger he thought it was in if he felt he needed the extra protection. "Since when do you have a driver's license?" you asked him, keeping your voice in a whisper through the conversation. You knew he'd hear you.

"Since a few weeks ago. Granted, it is magically created, but Lady Natasha and the others taught me to drive a car. They explained it would be a good idea if I had official human documents, so I created some."

You nodded at his explanation and stopped by your locker on your way to class. You noticed that all of the girls were staring at your boyfriend, who was pretending not to notice. He was failing at his pretending. He did notice when one of the boys took too much interest in your short plaid skirt. That was the downside of the uniform: teenage boys were immensely stupid.

"Don't," you told Loki firmly when you caught his glare and the tense of his shoulders that indicated he was going to do something stupid. Namely stabbing the idiot. "Leave the poor boy alone,"

"If you had heard his thoughts, you would not be stopping me," Loki's whisper was a hiss. That couldn't be a good sign.

"You can't attack him for thinking inappropriate thoughts," you explained calmly. The trick was to pretend to be calm so Loki would stay calm too. "He has to actually do something, which he won't. Teenage boys are stupid, but that's it. He's not going to try anything,"

"If he touches you..."

"Then you can do something. C'mon I'm going to be late." When calm didn't work, distraction and redirection usually did. You turned from your locker and headed down the hall in the other direction from the idiot boy. He was the star quarterback, a senior who had a full-ride scholarship to some university next year. He was the pride of the school. Not that you cared, you hadn't even bothered to learn his name. You just knew him on sight and avoided him whenever you could. You had the feeling that you were the only girl left in the school he hadn't had as a conquest, and that wasn't going to change. Ever.

Loki checked out the classroom before he would let you walk in, which was completely unnecessary, but his job. You took a seat in the back corner of the classroom where Loki could stand near your desk out of the way, and hopefully out of the attention of the class. That was an unrealistic expectation on your part as he was still extremely noticeable and all the girls, and quite a few of the guys, kept sneaking glances at him when they though the teacher wasn't looking. It didn't help that the teacher had made an announcement at the beginning of class pointing out who he was and why was there. You kept my head down and pretended you didn't notice, trying to focus on my classwork.

A note appeared on your desk halfway through class. <Why are you studying Latin?> the note was written in Loki's elegant, masculine script. You recognized it from the other notes he'd left you.

<It's mandatory> you wrote back on the same slip of paper. Loki's words had vanished after you read them.

<Why?> Pesky, bored, trickster bodyguard. At least the note also contained the translation for the next line of text you were translating, which was helpful when you were called on unprepared.

<It's good for vocabulary and the SATs>

<What are the SATs?>

<A stupid test we have to take to get into college, where I have to go to learn to be a doctor,> you wrote out the whole explanation so he wouldn't ask more pesky questions. You were supposed to be paying attention. A doodle appeared on the slip of paper of him ripping the boy from earlier in half. It was detailed enough that you could recognize the boy. Though he had x's for eyes and it was such a silly doodle that you had to stifle a laugh. <You promised to behave> you reminded him. He was failing at behaving.

<Your uncle said your birthday is coming up. When?>

<Behave and I'll tell you after class> you scribbled back. Your stupid Latin class was an AP level class and you needed to pay attention, though you shouldn't have bothered trying, even the teacher was distracted by Loki's presence. It was going to be such a long day.

Loki at least behaved for the rest of that class and you left as soon as you could to head to your next class. You clutched your books to your chest, embarrassed by the attention your bodyguard drew in the hallway.

"Stand up straight, love, do not hide from their attention. Embrace it. They are just jealous, after all," you heard Loki's whisper in your ear, though you swore his mouth didn't move. Plus, he was walking behind you looking hot as hell, and intimidating as hell. You sighed, but he wouldn't leave you alone until you did as he asked. Overprotective boyfriend. You stood up straighter, like you had to for formal events with the Avengers, or with Uncle Tony and his company. You tried to ignore the attention you and Loki were getting. You did noticed the stupid football quarterback checking me out again as you walked past him in the hall. "Are you sure I cannot kill him for thinking such inappropriate things?"

"I'm sure, Loki, we don't just kill people," you reminded him. This was going to be a long day indeed if you kept having to remind Loki not to kill the teenage boys. Loki's tone had been joking, but you weren't entirely convinced he wouldn't kill someone for a perceived threat to you. That was the danger of having Loki as a bodyguard. Or was it the danger of having your boyfriend as a bodyguard?

"So, when is your birthday?" he finally asked.

"Next week Saturday," you replied. You didn't have a reason to hide it from him, but you generally didn't go advertising it either. Loki nodded, taking your words into consideration. You wondered what he was going to do with that information.

Somehow you made it through your morning classes and all the way to lunch. You took your normal table with Loki standing against the nearest wall, within guarding distance, but not obtrusive. You looked up, surprised, when some of the most popular girls in the school sat down at your table without even asking. You felt Loki shift his stance at your surprised expression. You shook your head, almost imperceptibly, but you knew he would have caught it.

"So... who's the bodyguard?" The alpha cheerleader asked without even pretending small talk, or pretending you were friends.

"That's Loki. He's guarding me today. There's been enough trouble with The Harlequin that the Avengers thought I needed extra protection until it's taken care of," you told the group of girls. Maybe the truth would make them go away faster.

"He's super hot," they told you in a stage whisper. Even if Loki hadn't been eavesdropping he could have heard them. You shrugged. You weren't going to give him the satisfaction of hearing you agree with her. Plus, you'd seen him without a shirt and they hadn't, so they didn't even know what they were talking about.

"Does no one interest you?" one of the other girls asked, before getting elbowed in the ribs by the alpha cheerleader.

"Is he single?"

You shook your head, suddenly possessive. You weren't going to let these bitches stake a claim on your boyfriend. "Nope, he's taken. That's why he's here with me. He was one of the Avengers who wouldn't get distracted," you told them.

They didn't seem overly concerned. That wasn't a good thing.

"That can be changed..." the alpha mused. "What's she like?"

"I'm not sure. Besides, I think 'she' might be a 'he',"

The girls all whined at that one. "Why are all of the hot ones gay?" the girl who got elbowed whined loudly and all the girls but the alpha stormed off.

"I saved you from as many as I could," you whispered after the alpha had gotten up to go bother Loki.

"By insinuating I am gay..." his voice whispered in your ear. "Is that supposed to be an insult?"

"Not at all, but they weren't going to give up," you replied. You heard him making very disinterested small talk with alpha cheerleader, but somehow in such an awfully British, excessively polite way that she couldn't be upset, got her to go away and leave him alone to do his job.

You finished your lunch, got up, and handed the extra sandwich you had purchased to Loki. He looked surprised, well and truly shocked by your actions. He hadn't been surprised you had gotten an extra sandwich. Supers had higher metabolisms, and he must've thought you did too, or just didn't question the amount of food. "You didn't get a lunch," you told him. You had noticed he refused to pick one up when you went through the line even though you had told him to. You didn't want him going hungry.

"I am on duty," he replied, trying to hand the sandwich back.

You had this planned out too. You didn't take the sandwich. Instead, you pointed to the restroom at the back of the cafeteria. "I'm going in there, where you can't follow. I've seen you supers eat, you can have that devoured by the time I come back." He didn't argue with that logic, but looked pleased, or maybe impressed, that you had thought enough of him to take care of him too. You weren't a super, but you could at least be a decent human.

"Thank you," was all he said in reply, but you heard the sincerity, and the vulnerability, and... hope in his voice. It made you wonder if anyone had ever been kind to him for him to be so bruised. He still walked you to the restroom, but stayed outside while you went in.

He followed you from the cafeteria after that, throwing away the sandwich wrapper on your way out so you wouldn't think he had just thrown the sandwich away out of honor or some such silliness. "You'll like my next class," you told him while you were at your locker switching out your morning things for your afternoon things.

"And what class is that?" he asked, curious.

"You'll see," you told him with a grin. You led him up to the top floor of the school, right in the middle. You entered the large double doors of the huge room there and entered the school's giant library. You heard Loki's gasp, and saw his momentary lapse in proper bodyguard behavior. You smiled as you watched him take in the sight of the giant room full of books. "I have a free period this period, so I work in the library. It's better than sitting in study hall. Most of the time I just sit at the desk doing homework, but today..." you headed over to the book return cart. You usually got one of the freshmen to do the book returns, but decided to do them today, so Loki could trail behind me, investigating all of the books. After you put all of the books away, you took your spot behind the counter and got to work on my homework while Loki stood behind you looking intimidating. You had to promise some of the freshmen that they could check out books without your bodyguard doing anything more mean to them than silently judge them based on their book choices. That got you laughs from the freshmen and they went along their way.

"Try to behave next class. I have a math test," you told Loki as you walked to your next class.

"You're no fun today," he complained, his magical whisper voice now felt like his lips were touching your ear as he spoke, sending a shiver down your spine. Annoying bored trickster boyfriend. You heard him laugh, but at least that phantom sensation wasn't back.

"I never said school would be fun," you reminded him dryly. "I believe I complained, in fact, that it was school and boring."

The next class was boring for him, but hectic for you. You hated math and math test day was even more awful. Part of the way through the exam all of the answers and the work that went along with them appeared as an illusion on top of your paper. You glared at the page.

<Loki, I can't cheat> you wrote in pencil on a slip of paper, and quickly erased it before the teacher saw. You knew Loki would have seen.

<Fine> The illusion disappeared from your test paper for a moment before it reappeared. <One of the problems is wrong. You will have to do all of them to figure out which one>

You mumbled something unflattering about annoying tricksters, but you did all of the problems and showed all of the work. In the end, you realized that all of the answers he had provided had been correct. You checked them all over again, but came to the same conclusion.

"They were all right," you growled at him the second class was over and you were safely in the hall. You heard his laugh, though you were sure no one else heard anything from the stoic-looking guard.

You somehow survived the rest of the day and you had the feeling you were both equally relieved when you could leave the school and head back to the tower. Once we were safely a block or so from campus and away from prying eyes, Loki took the step to catch up to you and stole your bag from your shoulder. "Loki!" you protested, but he just laughed and took your hand. He lifted it to his lips and kissed your knuckles.

"I missed being able to actually spend time with you," he told you gently.

"I missed that too." You had gotten used to his company after the last couple of days of twenty-four hour guard duty.

"I was glad to be able to make sure you were safe." He leaned down to give you a kiss. You stood up on your toes to meet him halfway. You enjoyed the feel of his cool lips on mine, though you did have to break the kiss to make it the rest of the way back to the tower.

Most regrettable indeed.

But Loki wouldn't risk you getting more grounded for a few kisses outside.