I listened to this masterpiece and immediately thought of Lokius.
I see this scene in my mind very detaily.
Loki and Mobius are faced with a big decision and one of them must stay and the other must leave.
I don't know what exactly should happen. I haven't thought about it. But it would have to do something with multiverses, time slipping and other difficulties.
The one who has to go and stop it is Loki. And this would be the dialogue they would have between them:
Mobius: Loki, I know you and all of yours variants. You've never been a hero. Your intentions have always been very selfish. You've never wanted to save the world so why now? Why don't you just stay with me?
Loki: Well, that sounds pretty much like me right? You are not wrong. You know me so well and trust me, I want to stay by your side. But I've never said that I want to save the world. What I want in the first place is to save YOU. And if I'm lucky....I swear...I'm gonna save US.
Pairing: Mobius M. Mobius x TVAworker!Reader
Word Count: 2.0k
T/W: flufffff / comfort
A/N: comfort fic, sometimes life changes even positive ones are scary.
It had been an exciting weekend for you, new promotion, new office, and new tasks. It was what everyone would call “moving up in life,” yet somehow you didn’t feel the positiveness that everyone claimed should be surrounding you. Replacing it was a sensation of fear and doubt, not of anyone around you, rather of yourself. Clearly people, Ravonna, the Timekeepers, thought you were worthy of this position otherwise you wouldn’t have been given it. Regardless, that just didn’t compute with you.
Mobius had thrown you a mini congratulations-on-your-new-office party a few days ago, or at least he called it a party, it was really only the two of you. You thought about expressing your fears and anxieties then, but he was so proud of you and venting over champagne didn’t seem like the right time. So, you took to repressing anything and everything regarding negativity about this new promotion, although that doesn’t mean they just vanished from your thoughts. Instead they hung like heavy rain clouds in your mind, keeping you on edge wondering when the downpour of emotion would break free and drown out every bit of functional reasoning.
On Mobius’ newly memorized walk to your office he nodded at everyone he walked past, hands in his pockets, like any other day. Expecting to find you in the new uniform Ravonna had required of you, he already had a witty compliment planned out for when you stepped out from behind your desk. Walking into your office he began, hands on his hips as he looked immediately to a pile of files to his left, “Hey Hun, do you have the-“ He only stopped when he looked up to your desk and realised he’d been talking to thin air.
Dropping his hands from his hips, he looked around, made one quick sweep behind your desk, just for good measure, but found no trace of you. Pausing for a moment to think, he went through the check list: it wasn’t your day off, it wasn’t lunch hour, it wasn’t a staff meeting day, etc. He hung around only for a moment, before heading off to his cubicle. You had a habit of dropping by, and he figured with all the praise for the new office, you might want some place to hide. He half expected to find you waiting for him there with a “there you are” smile across your lips, but stepping around the corner, hand on the glass half-wall, he found his chair as he had left it: empty.
Setting a hand on his hip, he tapped the top of the half-wall that cornered in his cubicle. Closing his eyes and dropping his head with a smile as if to say “right, of course,” he had one more place to check and headed for the elevators. Down, down, down, each ding resembled a level and it seemed to go on for quite some time, but finally he was there: Level 4. The golden doors slid open and immediately a sweet, but faint, aroma of cookies and cake batter occupied his sense of smell. It wasn’t enough to make one nauseous, just enough to feel like a comfort. The gentle sound of soft melodic harps were played on the level. He nearly ran into a cotton candy coloured cloud on his path.
Taking a deep breath, he opened the door to the level’s conference room, he found it’s soft velvet lined chairs unoccupied, but heard a familiar mumbling. It was numbers, months, days and smooshed together with “ifs, ands, buts, ors” between phrases. The occasional sniffle and heavy sigh followed by a shallow inhale was easily heard as well. Shutting the door behind him, he circled the table and found exactly what he was looking for. Sitting criss-cross on the floor, surrounded by two stacks of files, and papers sprawled out in every direction, he found you in an old TVA sweatshirt people were given during training days.
“If B-15 could be there in twenty minutes, the fifteen minute break wouldn’t need to be a concern, but- but,” you were mumbling through apparent tears, but wiping them away in time to keep them from falling onto your papers.
Standing a few feet away, as to not startle you, Mobius watched the scene play out, repeating: mumbles, tears, wipe, sniffle, scribble-scribble, move paper; mumbles, tears, wipe, sniffle, and so on. Only once did he see you lean back against the glass wall, pen in hand, fists pressed to your temples, as you squeezed your eyes shut and tried to take deep breaths. He opted to move in after witnessing your distress.
“Hey there,” he started, soft tone as always, catching your attention without startling you.
“Hey,” you managed in a hoarse tone, wiping your eyes now with both hands gently, before looking up at him from where you sat, “did you- do you need me to sign something?”
Your eyebrows were furrowed and lips slightly parted, tear stains obvious even though they were currently absent and now absorbed into your sweatshirt sleeve, leaving little dark blobs in the fabric. It was a look that seemed to say if he said yes you would shatter and only prove that you’d already forgotten something pertaining to your new job.
A sympathetic smile came to his face, “no,” he shook his head, “I don’t need you to sign anything, Sweetheart.”
“Okay,” you said almost silently.
“But I would like you to tell me what’s going on,” he stated.
“I don’t know what you mean,” you played it off, glancing back down at your paperwork, but you couldn’t repress a quick sniffle, to which you, as casually as you could, wiped your top lip with the edge of your rolled over sleeve.
“Honey, you’re crying on Level 4,” Mobius said with loving honesty, and a tender chuckle.
“So?” You asked, tilting your head just enough to see him.
“This is the Sweet Dreams level,” he took his hands out of his pockets to gesture to the glass window, “there are literally sheep, ridiculously fluffy sheep, jumping over fences in a time loop. The air smells like a fresh bakery, clouds float down the hallway, the sound of harps are somehow everywhere. I’m pretty sure they have a teddy bear for a secretary. . .,” he paused furrowing his eyebrows and looking down, “how does that work? They don’t have fingers do they- no, that’d be creepy.”
That managed a small laugh from you, bringing his attention back to you, “so, come on, talk to me.”
You leaned your back against the glass pane, staring straight down at all your paperwork, “I know I should be happy, overjoyed, excited, but. . .I’m not,” you shrugged, feeling the tears well in your eyes, “I’m scared, really scared.”
With that, the wave of emotion hit again, there was always something about finally speaking your feelings aloud to another soul that forced you to feel the weight of them. Covering your mouth with your hand and squeezing your eyes shut, attempting to halt the full on tear attack, you heard a loving “aw, honey.”
Next thing you knew, Mobius was sitting next to you, opening his arms to you. Gladly accepting, you took a few minutes to cry it out in his embrace, he hushed you and reassured you that it was okay and not to worry about soaking his favourite tie. He just held you until you raised your head and took a deep breath, his arm was still around you, now slipping to rub your back as you straightened up.
Seeing you cry hurt his heart, but he knew this was a needed, necessary, long overdue cry. He brushed a thumb featherlike across your wet eyelashes and kissed your forehead while you composed yourself best you could.
“You wanna talk about that?” He asked with a half smile and tilt of the head.
You nodded, smiling to yourself that you let yourself get to this point. Setting your hands in your lap, you used your hands to talk, interlacing them and unlacing them, opening them and clenching them, spinning them, and so on, as you did when nervous or stressed.
“I know this promotion is a positive, I know that,” you started as if convincing yourself still.
“Right,” Mobius nodded, hanging his wrist over his bent knee.
“But,” you inhaled, “the change is scary. I’m farther away from you, I’m in a new location, with new people, new assignments, and that is kind of terrifying. I know I was picked for a reason, but if i get this wrong, I could screw up so much stuff, that has a lot of consequences, for more people than just myself. If all goes well no worries, BUT if something, one thing goes wrong. . .”
He let you take a breather without interruption.
“I want this, I’ve wanted this,” you admitted, looking down at your hands in your lap, “but now that I’m here, it feels so much scarier than I ever imagined. Now I’m asking myself: am I up for this? And if I’m not-”
Looking up, your eyes were lined with tear drops ready to fall like rain. Mobius tilted his head sympathetically telling you ‘it’s okay.’
Tilting your head back, you tried even harder to keep them from falling. Laughing, you sniffled, pressing the bridge of your nose with both fingertips, “this is pathetic right? I’m pathetic for thinking like this, right?” You mumbled into your hands.
“No,” Mobius started, sincerely, “no, you’re not. It’s natural to dislike change, good or bad, it’s still forcing you to change, which we are creatures of habit, so there’s nothing wrong with being scared about the uncertainty ahead.”
Looking at him, you rolled your head almost against your shoulder with a ‘really or are you just saying that?’ expression.
“I’m serious,” he started again, shaking his head, “you know what happens when things change, it can be dangerous, it can be good, but it always takes time to get used to. New things are scary, but you’ve got this. Don’t put the pressure on yourself to be perfect though, some of the best things happen when we aren’t perfect. But, if anything happens, I’ll take the blame.”
You smiled, “you’re technically not in my department.”
“Doesn’t matter,” Mobius shrugged, “I get in trouble enough that I know how to get out of it.”
You leaned into him and hummed, knowing his statement was all too true. He kept you close with one arm still reaching around your frame. Change could be good, you knew that to be true as well by just looking at the person next to you; you swore you’d never fall in love, and yet it was the best change you’d ever experienced.
“So, what is all this?” he stretched out his legs, crossing one heel over the other and pointed to your paperwork labyrinth.
“Well, this is everyone’s schedule,” you gestured to everything, “based on the daily reports that are submitted to me from everyone and every department, so far I’ve managed to schedule three months out-”
“Three months?” Mobius said with a shocked laugh, “wow, I haven't even submitted my paperwork for today. . .I’m gonna get a pass on that though right?”
You looked up to find him already looking at you, there was no way you could deny him that, “yes,” you agreed, leaning in to press a soft kiss against his lips, which he obviously saw coming and was prepared to respond to. Your smile broke the kiss, pulling back you glanced up through your eyelashes.
“See,” he whispered, softly shaking your shoulder, “you’re already helping people out.” You closed your eyes and laughed, leaning further against his chest. Kissing your temple he said in a more serious and confident tone, “you’re gonna do great.”
“I love you,” you sighed, wrapping your arms around him.
“I love you more,” he spoke softly, before a pause, “is that my sweatshirt?”
You've been working side-by-side with Mobius since you joined the TVA. In fact, you couldn't remember a time when you were without his playful teasing and kind smiles. You couldn't remember a time before Mobius, and you hoped he would be in your future too.
AN: wrote this before Loki Episode 4, so sorry if there’s any incongruency. Enjoy!
“Damn it!” Mobius threw his arms up and over his head as the glowing temporal portal closed behind Loki. “Ah!”
You watched as he kicked at the supermarket floor. The sole of his shoe sneaked against the smooth tile and undercut the anger behind his action. However, it did not do anything to ease the nervousness that twisted your gut. You barely ever saw Mobius so angry, so far removed from his cool demeanor.
“We need to go,” pressed one of the field agents. “It’s about to redline.”
“Everything is going to redline!” Mobius shouted, his back turned to you and the other agents. “Damn it!”
The agents glanced at each other before they looked to you. Through their visors, you could feel their waiting eyes watching you for any sign of ‘next steps’. Despite working on the Laufeyson-Laufeydottir case with Mobius for a while, you were still lacking field experience. Let alone experience in how to handle multiple redlining branch timelines at once.
In an unfamiliar situation, you would look to Mobius. Yet, when you looked to him then, his back was still turned and his hands were behind his head, elbows in the air, defeated.
So, you used the only useful experience you had and walked over to Mobius. You stepped to stand in front of him in the hopes of drawing his attention back to your shared surroundings. Though, Mobius’ eyes remained fixed above and past you. He stared into the red, dimly lit superstore.
“Mobius,” you murmured, “Mobius, please.”
At the sound of your voice, small and soft, his light eyes met your gaze. His arms fell down to his sides, but he remained silent. You frowned and stepped closer until his body heat kissed your own.
Slowly, you reached your hands up and held his shoulders. Drops of rain that still clung to his coat soaked into the skin of your palms. It was a cold touch at first and the chill that raced up your arms pushed you to let go. As you did, you brushed your hands down, traced across his biceps, his elbows, until you started to pull away.
As you dropped your hands, ready to lead the charge out of the apocalypse and back to the TVA, Mobius caught one of your wrists. With a slight jolt, you stalled in your movements and craned your neck to meet his gaze. In his eyes, you saw glimmers of fear. You had known Mobius since...since forever, but you had never seen him afraid.
“We have to go,” you pressed, gently maneuvering you hand into his. “We can deal with this.”
“We can...yeah. We need to go,” he echoed as your fingers intertwined. You nodded in agreement and gave his hand a squeeze. It felt so natural, the feeling of Mobius’ skin against yours. Surely it was against the TVA code of conduct. It had to be.
His touch grounded you so well, too well. Just as it had when you first hugged when he transferred you to the Laufeyson case. It eased your doubt and fear but instilled you with fear for a different reason. Though, it seemed your touch did the same for Mobius, minus the latter half. Fear faded from his eyes and his typical steadiness returned as he turned around.
With resolve, Mobius walked over to the other agents and bid one or them to open a new temporal portal to the TVA. Never once did he pull away or drop his hand from yours. If anything, Mobius’ hold on you tightened as you all strode through the golden-lit doorway. For a moment, you were hopeful that he wouldn’t let go at all.
Those hopes were dashed the second you stepped inside the TVA. People were scattered about, running to and fro with fear chasing after their shadows. Shouts, some of anger and others of urgency, sounded out in a cacophonous chorus.
At the sight of mass panic, Mobius dropped your hand and your face fell with it.
“We need to find the Variant and Loki,” he said, eyes still taking in the scene, “now.”
“Where would they go?”
He glanced back at you with slightly wide eyes. “Another apocalypse, to hide.”
“Okay, but...there’s countless,” you replied, your mind racing through the possibilities.
“All the files are still out at my desk.” Mobius immediately began dodging through the crowds of TVA workers. You followed closely after him, letting the platoon of field agents you traveled with get swept away in the chaos. As you moved, bumping shoulders with passersby, you wished Mobius would reach behind himself and grab your hand again.
Quickly, you swallowed the thought and asked, “what if we had the means to track them?”
“Track them.” Mobius echoed, barely throwing his gaze over his shoulder at you as he continued to forge a path to his desk.
“With an energy surge maybe...or the TemPad. It would save us time, instead of jumping from one world-ending event to another.”
“Right as always, Y/N,” he said, pausing just enough so you could walk in stride with him through the bustling hallways.
Every now and then, as you both hurried to Mobius’ desk, his hand would brush against yours. It was a tender knocking of knuckles or the tips of his fingers kissing your own as his arms swung with each step. It was a comfort. Though, it was also a terrible temptation to reach out, one that you found yourself fighting far too frequently since you started to work with Mobius on his case.
How many times had you caught yourself staring too long at the lazy, almost ever-present smile on his lips? Was there a time you didn’t melt at the sound of his laughter or feel your chest warm with adoration as you watched him work? Even Loki had teased you about it, though Mobius had always been quiet to diffuse the teasing. Focusing had been difficult, but you had to reign it in, for the sake of the Sacred Timeline.
However, the sight of Mobius’ desk dampened your determination. It was just as you, he, and Loki left it: covered in files. With a sigh, you strode over and flicked through the ones you discarded before, hundreds of apocalyptic happenings condensed to a few pages. As you began to pull the happenings interest, you heard a shuffling.
You looked up and saw Mobius. With a small huff, tossed his jackets along the back of his chair and began to tug at the straps of his tactical vest. His knuckles went white with strain as he pulled to no avail. At the first grumble of frustration, you dropped the files back on top of the desk and moved over to Mobius.
“Here, let me help.”
Before he could protest, you were unfastening the numerous straps and buckles of his vest. Beneath your working fingers, Mobius’ chest rose and fell quickly. You figured he was still angry about Loki’s betrayal, despite how you both saw it coming. No matter the cause for his rapid breaths, you continued to work until Mobius was without his vest, clad only his button-down and sideways tie.
“Feel like I’m always fixing this for you,” you muttered as you straightened the tie.
“You’re the best at it,” Mobius said, his voice gentle and luring you to look up at him. When you did, you found there was no lingering anger in his features. His brow was relatively relaxed, given the high-stress situation you were all in, and barely-there hints of his signature smile played at the corners of his mouth. “You’re the best.”
You shook your head and let your hands fall to your sides. “I’m...I’m just following your lead. I-”
“Don’t discount yourself,” he interrupted softly. His eyes fell from yours as he added, “you really pulled me back together, back there. I...thank you.”
“What are partners for?” You asked, a light-hearted tilt in your voice that you hoped would break the budding tension. It seemed to work as Mobius met your gaze once more. There was some serious glint in his eyes though that made your heart flutter.
“Yeah…”
A long, still stint of silence passed between you. Quietly, you both stared at each other. Mobius caught his breath and you felt your general unease ebb. It was just the two of you. Together you would fix this, figure it out. You just had to muscle through the want to pull Mobius close and forget everything else.
“So, we-”
“Y/N-”
You both paused and eyed each other in wait, wanting the other to speak first.
“You go,” Mobius said after a beat.
“No, no, you.” Mobius gave you an unamused look and you pressed him. “Go.”
He shifted his weight on his feet before he heeded your entreatment. “This isn’t the time or really the place for this,” he gestured to the files stacked around you both, “but...it’s been eating away at me…”
“What has?” You asked, your brow furrowing as you studied Mobius. He looked suddenly far away. His mind was somewhere else, lost in some memory.
“That promise you made, when I first transferred you…”
A smile crept along your lips as he rambled and reminisced on the occasion. “Mobius…”
“I know you made the promise to me, but I felt like I made it to you, too. Ya know?” You breath caught at his words, at the implications; but before you could interject, he continued. “But now, I can’t focus when you’re around, not like before. I need to tell you that-”
“Mobius,” you stepped forward and tugged him softly by the tie. His eyes met yours and you felt a sudden swell of courage. “I think I broke that promise.”
His eyebrows rose and his smile deepened. “Yeah?”
“Yeah,” you replied, the word floating on the upward turn of a chuckle.
“Well that’s...that’s one good thing to come of this.”
You nodded but still held back. Mobius’ tie slipped through your fingers and you let it as it was too much of a temptation. You were still wary about crossing some invisible line, some rule listed in a dust-covered TVA handbook lost in a desk drawer. But the way Mobius looked at you, with his light eyes bright and longing, made it impossible.
It was impossible not to lean upon your tip-toes and press a kiss to Mobius’ cheek. Your lips did not linger long, but it was enough to bloom goosebumps along your skin. When you pulled back, you were greeted by Mobius’ wide smile. Before you could tease him about his grin, Mobius’ hands reached out and pulled you flush against him.
His fingers trailed up to your face and tilted your lips towards his. Mobius waited, giving you a chance to pull away. You smiled at his carefulness, his unwillingness to push things too far. It made you comfortable, Mobius made you comfortable; even when the world around you was falling apart.
So, you leaned forward and Mobius kissed you. His mustache tickled your skin but you were far too distracted by the softness of his lips against yours. Slowly, he pulled away and met your gaze. His breath danced along your neck and coaxed an easy, comfortable smile to your lips.
“Think you can focus now?” You asked, meeting Mobius’ gaze.
“Yeah, yeah,” he replied, pulling away, “I’ll pull info about TemPad tracking and redline surges.” Mobius turned as if to walk away before he leaned down to kiss you again. It was a quicker, more chaste kiss that lasted only a few seconds. “Yeah, I can focus.”
You smiled and shook your head as Mobius retreated towards the shelves of files. He left you by his desk, your lips tingling with the lasting love of his touch.
You've been working side-by-side with Mobius since you joined the TVA. In fact, you couldn't remember a time when you were without his playful teasing and kind smiles. You couldn't remember a time before Mobius, and you hoped he would be in your future too.
“That’ll kill you, you know.”
“What?” You asked, flicking your tired eyes to the left.
There, Mobius stood and tipped his head towards the coffee machine that sputtered and steamed before you. Fresh brew dripped down the spout like a muddied, leaking faucet. Even before the analogy, the coffee was unappealing, but it was a means to and end. You needed a jolt, some energy, organic or not, to drive you through the uneasy day.
When you looked from the slowly filling pot to Mobius, stood at your side, you expected to see the same distaste. Yet, his light eyes fixed on you and his lips pulled up in a smile so warm that you felt your coffee malaise melt away.
“Too much caffeine,” he clarified.
“Won’t too much of anything kill you?”
“You got me there.” Mobius raised a hand in mock defense as he spoke, and his smile bloomed into a grin. At the sight, you felt your own lips pull upwards. Mobius’ positive attitude was always infectious, infuriatingly so.
“Too much soda,” you continued, half-jokingly, “too much work.”
“Well, you better get used to too much work, since you’re joining me on the Laufeyson Variant case.”
You went rigid in shock and your eyes danced across Mobius’ face. Was he serious?
A quiet moment passed between you and you used the spot of time to read his face. That annoyingly knowing and kind smile remained on his lips. Nothing in his features gave way, whispered of some silent joke. He only blinked at you, seemingly in wait for your reply. He was serious.
“You…”
“I organized your transfer, so if you don’t want a piece of that action, I’ll have to-”
“No! No, I do,” you interrupted in a rush. “I just…” You flicked your eyes around the breakroom, across the scattered, somewhat familiar faces, before you fixed on Mobius’ gaze once more. “I’m debating whether a hug is against the corporate code of conduct.”
Mobius threw his head back slightly as he laughed. “As long as you promise me that you won’t fall in love with me.”
Then it was your turn to laugh. What a funny thought. And how cliche it would be, falling for him, your closest friend, your best confidant, your co-worker. With a fond smile, you shook your head to curtail the continuous chuckle that spilled out of your mouth. No, that simply would not do.
“Promise,” you replied as you met Mobius’ eyes. In their greyish blue, you saw a glimmer. Though, before you could name what it was, he smiled and your chest tightened. Bubbles of lingering laughter caught in your throat as Mobius reached out for you.
It was a bumbling embrace with hands too careful and shoulders too stiff. Mobius’ arms wrapped snugly around your shoulders as yours fastened around his waist. Your body melted into the warmth of his and, in that moment, you realized this was the first time you ever hugged Mobius M. Mobius. How had you waited this long?
Too easily, you succumbed to the swirling whirlwind of doubt and pulled away. “Thanks, for the transfer.”
“It wasn’t really even a choice,” Mobius said with a wave of his hand. You eyed him tenderly and, when you noticed the slant in his tie, you reached out to fix it. Fingertips brushed against the thin fabric of his shirt. Just as you fixed the knot, you looked up at Mobius as he added, “you’re the only one I want with me on this job.”
Heat rushed to your face at his words and you offered him a smile that felt too shy for your liking. You flicked your attention and your hands from Mobius and to the coffee pot that, with a final sputter, dribbled the last fresh drops of brew. You lost your appetite for the drink as you were full-on implications surrounding the Laufeyson case. Caffeine would do nothing compared to the liquid adrenaline running through your veins now. Mobius always had this effect on you, but the thought of working with him, every day…
The idea made it hard to swallow.
“It will be dangerous,” Mobius said softly and his voice coaxed your eyes to his. There was a seriousness in his gaze, the teasing tilt long gone from his features. “There’s...a lot behind the scenes of this case. If you’re not caught up on the Laufeyson file, I have a copy at my desk.”
“I’ve stayed up listening to you talk about it. I think I’ve got it memorized by this point.”
Mobius smiled and his eyes danced across your face. “Great.” He turned his back to you and towards the breakroom door. “Let’s go.”
Your jaw dropped slightly as you watched him go. “Right now?”
“Right now,” he replied as he glanced over his shoulder and back at you. “Unless you wanna take your coffee break.”
As he spoke, Mobius’ grin spread wider across his face. He already knew your answer. He knew you well, too well, in all the ways that mattered. That was why he continued to walk away, confident that you would follow after him and into the slow-moving future at his side.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
Published: 5-January-2024
Rating: General Audiences
Chapters: 1
Word count: 1,677
Summary: Ripping himself from every thread of time and space (all at once) has left Loki a little too tired. When Mobius starts to notice, he decides he will do his best to make sure his friend gets some rest.
Warnings: Minor injuries
A/N: Set after the events of Loki S02E01. AKA Loki needs a nap (and he gets one).
