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Captain America: The Winter Soldier was epic- everyone go see it. I wrote the majority of this chapter listening to the soundtrack
Chapter Twenty Six- Protectors
~Thea' POV~
Dinner is loud and rowdy, exactly what I had imagined an Asgardian dinner to be like. Thor, Fandral, and Volstagg entertain the rather large crowd with stories of their adventures in the nine realms, which attract raging reviews. I laugh alongside Leah and Jane, who are beside me. Sif is on the other side of me, but I do not really engage her in conversation. I try not to really think about Loki's words towards me earlier, but they sting me nonetheless
Leah begins to yawn even though it isn't too late yet, but Jane looks at me with a smile, "I'm going to take her to bed. Would you like to come?"
I glance at Thor, and then nod. Jane picks Leah up and together, we slip out of the dining hall and into the quiet corridors of the palace. We pass a few guards and servants but other than that, we are alone.
By the time we reach Leah's room, she has fallen into a light sleep, her head resting on Jane's shoulder. Jane lies her down on the bed and then covers her up. I help tuck in the edges and adjust the soft, fluffy pillows. I notice Jane watching me, but I don't really pay attention to her.
Looking down at Leah, sleeping and dreaming peacefully, I wonder what the future will bring for us. We no longer have a home, and no family that I know of, except for Darcy, but everyone knows she couldn't possibly take care of us. My sister's innocence hurts me a little, because even though she is subject to the terrors we are now facing, she isn't responsible for the life of someone else, like I am.
"You knew my parents."
The statement comes out of my mouth before I can stop it. Jane pauses from where she is blowing out the several candles near the bed and looks up at me. Her large, inquisitive eyes are full of sadness.
Sighing, she stands up and beckons out of the room. I kiss Leah's cheek softly and we leave her breathing peacefully in a blessed sleep.
Jane sits down on a bench across the hall from Leah's room, and near mine. "You got my letter, didn't you?"
I shrug, not trusting myself to speak even though I had sworn to myself that I would not cry when this moment came.
Jane looks away for a moment, takes a deep breath and says painfully, "They were my best friends. We met freshman year in college, all of us. I knew your father first, and that's how he met your mother."
I nod- I'd already known this. When I had asked, my mom had told me that she and dad had met through a mutual friend in college.
"Your parents were curious. Too curious at some points, I suppose." A wry smile crosses her lips. "In New Mexico, around the same time I met Thor, your parents told me they discovered something, something dangerous. I think it has something to do with the Imeldi. But what they found scared them, and that's when Erik and Angela stopped their astrological work- well, the real deal anyway."
I wince at my parents' names, then hesitate, biting my lip. Jane sighs again. "You need to understand that your parents loved you and Leah very much."
"I know." I say sharply. I'm tired of people telling me that. I'm not foolish enough to see past the love that my parents gave me for my entire life. Well my entire life until this chaotic, crazy month.
Jane seems to see that this upset me, because she hurries one, "They never told me what they discovered. I think they just stopped. Did the letter say anything about it?"
I hesitate, many many thoughts flickering through my head. I could tell Jane about the Mantra in hopes that we can recover it before the Imeldi do, but at the same time, I don't know anything about it and how my decision could affect Leah and me.
Instead of answering her question, I ask, "What are the convergences?"
Jane sucks in a breath. "How did you hear about that?"
I shrug. "I hear things."
Jane regards me curiously. Then, she says, "The convergences are points that the universe can possibly line up together so that they coincide every five thousand years ago or so. It happened last year."
"Oh." I say, my mind racing. I know I need to tell Jane about what my mom said in the letter, but I can't bring myself to do it right now. Besides, I want to get some rest. Even though the time difference from earth to Asgard has no effect on me whatsoever, I don't feel like going through this anymore. "Um, well thanks for everything," I say, then get up and walk towards my bedroom.
"Thea?"
I turn around, my hand still on the door handle.
"You know you can tell me anything right?" Jane asks brightly. "And Thor."
"Yes." I say honestly. I close the door behind me with a slight bang.
As soon as I have locked the door, I run over to my bag, dig through the back pocket and find the letter from my mother. I skim through it, my eyes darting around. Not England and not Russia. That doesn't help me much at all- I need to figure out where the convergence points are. There can't be many more.
Sighing, I lean against the bed. I love you. The words keep swimming in front of me. I wipe my eyes to ensure that I do not cry and then slip the precious piece of paper back inside the bag. My hand bumps the picture frame. I don't get it out.
"If you're not busy, then you need to come with me. If you are buy, then come with me anyway."
I jerk my head up. Loki is standing in front of me with his usual air of arrogance.
"The door was locked!"
"Yes it was." Loki smirks. "Now let's go."
I cross my arms and kick my bag under the bed surreptitiously. "Where are we going?"
"Apparently, there are new problems coming up, all having to do with you and your sister, and we need to regroup. We are meeting with everyone else."
"The Avengers?" I ask, shocked. "There's no way your father would let them come here."
"He's not my father!" spits Loki, and I recoil as Loki continues, glaring at me, "Odin didn't like the idea, but Thor persuaded him. He is allowing it for exactly twelve hours. Now let's go."
With a humph, I get off from the floor. As I'm about to pass Loki, he adds, "And whatever you're hiding in your bag, I'd advise you bring it with you."
I freeze.
Chuckling, he tosses the bag to me, and I catch it, still looking at him with wide eyes. "People don't kick things under beds without reason."
"I'll keep that in mind," I say dryly.
"Oh I'm sure you won't."
My answer is my stalking past him and out the door. "I won't."
~Nobody's POV~
Loki and Thea are the last to enter a large, empty room filled with stone and random tables. There are no windows. Inside, Thor, Jane, Steve Rogers, Tony Stark, Bruce Banner, Natasha Romanoff, Clint Barton, and Nick Fury stand waiting. Plus another woman, with dark brown hair, bright red lips, and square glasses.
"Hey there Thea, I'm Darcy Lewis," she says, shaking Thea's hand a bit too enthusiastically since Thea is not reciprocating the motion. "Wow, you look like your mom. Except you have your dad's eyes," Seeing Thea's confusion, she adds, "I met the Fossils once, before all the cray cray spacey stuff started-"
"I'm apologetic, Ms. Lewis, but that will have to wait. Our time is short here, and I do not wish to press the All-Father's generosity," says Fury loudly.
"Where is he anyway?" asks Loki coolly. "Didn't stay to join the fun?"
"Ooh, you're Loki," says Darcy, eyeing him. "I've heard a lot about you."
"Fascinat-" Loki is interrupted as Darcy slaps him across the face. "What is it about Midgardian women? And girls." He glares at Thea, who can't keep the grin off her face.
"Sorry," chirps Darcy. "Jane can't be the only one who has fun."
"Let's get down to business," interrupts Steve, coming around to put his arm on Thea's shoulder. "Barton?"
Carefully avoiding Thea's gaze, Clint begins to speak, "The Nest was attacked two hours after you left. It wasn't a coincidence, not by a long shot. Nearly the entire place was destroyed."
Steve can feel Thea tense under his hand.
"It gets worse. The Imeldi camp nearby was liberated. We believe that certain government agencies have been compromised by the monsters. Our guys apprehended and interrogated one of them- we're pretty sure his mind is being controlled by some substance. Possibly the Nitri, probably not. He killed himself before he would say anything else."
"So here's what we got," says Tony, rubbing his hands together and leaning against a wall. "The Imeldi are on the loose. We can't trust the government, which means quite possibly that we can't trust S.H.I.E.L.D. either. Technically, our only safe spot is here on Asgard, but the king isn't willing to give refuge to us. It's like Great Britain during World War Two."
"Actually, Great Britain gave aid to thousands of Jews," Steve says. "Learn your history, Stark."
"Sorry Cap," amends Tony. "Not all of us could have, to coin the phrase, the 'tangible experience'."
Steve is not amused.
Thea isn't paying attention to either of them. "Clint..." she says in a raspy voice. "Where's Jack?" When Clint doesn't respond, she says, breathing heavily, "Clint, what happened to Jack? Where is he?"
"Thea..." says Clint gently, his eyes full of emotion.
"Where is he!?" she exclaims. Steve tightens his hold on her shoulder, but she pushes him off. "Clint, where the hell IS JACK?" her last words transition into anguished rasps.
"He and Agent Hill, along with some of our other agent were captured," says Clint softly.
"Thea," says Steve.
"No," she sobs, "No, no, no, no, no. Please no."
"I'm sorry," says Clint. "Thea, I'm so sory."
"Thea," says Loki from the other side of the room. "You need to step awa-"
"Why couldn't you protect him?!" she howls. "You're his uncle, why didn't you do anything?!"
"Thea, I-"
But Thea is gone. Much to the dismay of the entire room, she lunges at Clint who, caught totally unprepared, falls back on the ground. Natasha runs over and tries to grab Thea, but the girl kicks her in the stomach, knocking the wind out of the Black Widow.
Thea's eyes are red, her irises usually such a vivid green turned to a bright crimson, the color of blood.
"What the hell?" asks Tony to nobody in particular as Steve dashes forward, trying to apprehend Thea, who is currently throwing Clint against a wall. Loki hastens forward as well.
"THEA!" yells Steve. "Get it together!"
Thea either doesn't hear him or doesn't care. She just gives Clint, who is powerless against her furious rage, a black eye. He groans in agony.
"Good lord what happened to her?" ask Darcy, but nobody is paying attention. "You guys didn't put her on steroids did you?"
Steve and Loki reach Thea just before her fist connects with Clint's face again. Steve grabs her around her waist and when she tries to send an elbow into his nose, Loki yanks her hair back so that she misses. Staggering, Steve manages to slam Thea against the wall. "Thea, c'mon, calm down kid, everything's fine."
"No, everything is not fine," she sobs, but her body is weakening as she realizes what she has done. "I'm a killer, everyone's a killer, it's my fault I didn't warn him, what have I done, oh god please just let me die."
"Thea," whispers Loki, but she doesn't pay attention to him at all.
Steve wraps his arms around her as she cries, glancing up at the Asgardian god. "What do we do?"
It's Fury who answers. "Take her outside. Wait until she stops crying and then bring her back in. We're going to need her."
"She's a kid, Fury," says Steve as he strokes Thea's hair, "She's not some machine or some prized specimen you can just play around with."
"I know that, Rogers. But I also know that to save not only hers and Leah's lives, but also thousands of others, she's going to need to learn now to control herself." Fury glances not-so-surreptitiously at Banner, who is regarding the whole matter seriously, his arms crossed.
Steve shakes his head, and then tries to help Thea up, but she refuses. "I'm... I'm fine..." she chokes. "I need to hear this."
"Damn right you do," mutter Stark. Bruce smacks his elbow, but Thea didn't seem to hear.
"There will be no more trying to murder some of my best men, I that understood?" says Fury sternly. Thea nods dejectedly, too humiliated to look at Clint, who is getting to his feet with Natasha's and Thor's help. He looks beat up but other than a black eye and several cuts and bruises, he doesn't seem too harmed. "The only reason you're even here is because we all know that you would find some way to get in here and eavesdrop, and it would just save us a hell of a time to just let you in.
"Time is short, so I'm not going to take many 'no's,'" Fury looks from Thea to Steve to Thor. "The truth of the matter is that it's hard to trust anybody. We're about to get kicked out of the only safe haven we could possibly have. Thea and Leah are going to be separated again."
"Wha-" Thea is interrupted by a pointed look by Loki.
"It's the best thing for both of you," says Fury, his tone more gentle. "You're being hunted for your powers. We're going to hide you, but move your locations constantly. You're going to blend in with everybody else. As in: you're going to be perfectly normal."
"So you're sending us with Darcy and Jane?" asks Thea.
Darcy and Jane look hopeful.
"No." says Fury (the two women, especially Jane, look crushed). "As much as we appreciate both of their work, S.H.I.E.L.D. needs them. Like this mission, we are splitting up the Avengers strategically."
"As long as I don't have to go with Loki again, I'm fine."
"Actually, you are," says Fury. She groans, and Loki smirks. "And do you want to know the reason for that? It's because he seems to be the only person who can keep you from trying to kill yourself."
Loki's smug smirk intensifies, and Thea glares at him. "Who else goes with me?"
"Natasha. You too seem to have a lot in common, and besides we need someone to keep both of you in check."
"Fine."
"Good, because I told you, I wasn't taking 'no' for an answer. And to answer your next question, Thor and Bruce will be with Leah. I get Tony, Darcy, and Jane, and also Eric Selvig. That leaves Steve and Clint for the rescue mission."
She looks up. "Rescue mission?"
"You didn't think I was going to leave my nephew for certain death did you?" asks Clint in a relatively cheerful mood considering he had just been pummeled.
"The chances aren't good, but we won't give up." Says Fury. "Now let me make this clear, Thea. Natasha and Loki's job is to protect you. They're both willing to pay the price, but you must be willing to listen to them. Do you understand?"
"And what if I'd rather join Steve and Clint on the rescue mission?" When Fury hesitates, she rushes on, "Please, I just need to make sure that-"
"No, Thea. And that's my final word. If you try to get away from Natasha and Loki, I've given them permission to make sure that you won't try it again."
Thea knows what this means, and she carefully avoids looking at Loki for that very reason.
"You're leaving Asgard tomorrow morning," says Fury. "There's no point in hiding you here if the government is after the two of you, and the Asgardian king doesn't want us around."
"Where is my first location?"
"Chicago," says Fury. "You'll be there a maximum of two days."
"How long will the rescue mission take?"
"No more than that allotted amount."
"Let's get real." Says Thea. "You wouldn't have brought all the Avengers plus Darcy and Jane all the way to Asgard and risk upsetting Odin just to have a chat, and basically only to talk to me. What am I missing?"
Nick Fury raises his eyebrows. "You are missing nothing. The only other thing you need to know is that the three of you will be in disguise. And you will be hiding in a condominium. At least until the government finds you."
"You seem to sure."
"It's the American government. One thing we can always count on is their annoying habit of poking their noses into other people's business."
~Thea's POV~
I lie on top of the bed, not wanting to sleep but not wanting to do anything else besides throw and catch Gone with the Wind multiple times above me. After the fifth time, I miss, and it bonks my nose painfully.
Groaning, I sit up, flinging the book across the room. Before it hits the wall, it vanishes into green pixels. I groan again. "Go away Loki."
"So kind. But I suppose I really shouldn't expect any better from you. Am I right?"
"I'm not in the mood to talk." I say, turning my back on him. "What do you want?"
"Your mother's letter has information that you are divulging from me." When I try to protest, he talks over me. "Don't try to convince me otherwise. I know when you are hiding something from me, Thea."
I turn around and jump. He's standing less than a yard from the bed. "It's none of your business, Loki."
"Oh, but it is." To my horror, Loki raises his hand. Inside it, I see the letter.
"Where the hell did you get that?" I exclaim, leaping up and swiping at him- I miss. "Give it back!"
Loki tosses it to me, and I catch it right before it falls. "It's a good thing I already read it then."
I bang my head on the footboard in shock. "What?"
"The Mantra, the convergence points, the continuous statements about her love for you and your sister, come now Thea, do you really think I would let something like that lip by me without my investigation?"
"How dare you," I hiss. "That was none of your damn business!"
"Actually it was. No matter how much you dislike it, and as much as I dislike it as well, I am protecting you now. And that," he points to his letter, "Gives me everything I need to know."
"You told Fury?"
He gives me a crooked smile. "Indeed I did."
I lunge at him, but he is too quick for me. He grabs my arms and slams me against the wall so that I am whimpering in pain and in defeat. As I writhe against his vise-like grip, he hisses in my ear, "You need to stop fighting me, Thea, because you will never win. I am stronger than you are, kitten and you know it. That's why you're so desperate to go after me because you are so desperate to prove yourself."
"No...it' not..." I wail, struggling against him, but this time he just flips me around and holds me against the wall with one arm. With the other, he pulls my chin up so that I am forced to look into his eyes.
"Listen to me very carefully. In the following days, you are going to obey me and you are not going to hesitate in doing so. I'm not going to tolerate your idiotic heroics any longer. Your life is on the limb."
"Don't... pretend you care about me," I manage.
Loki snarls at me. "Stop talking. You're going to obey me, and you're going to do it the first time I or Natasha tell you. Am I clear?"
I refuse to answer, struggling against him and looking past his face towards the other wall.
He shakes me, and my head strikes the wall painfully. "Am I clear, Thea? Don't make me lock you in-"
The words are too painful. "You said you...wouldn't..." I whisper.
He laughs dryly. "I said I was sorry, but now, I'm glad I did! It will make you realize that I am not playing around with you any longer." He lets me go, and I fall against the bed, shaking. "Now don't play a game with me, little one," he says degradingly. "I will win. I will always win."
I begin to cry again. I'm not sure why. There's some silence, and then I hear him sigh. Movement next to me. He is pulling me up. "Let go of me!"
"Sh," he say, setting me on my feet and wrapping his arms around me, like Steve did earlier. "Just cry and let it out, darling."
And I do. And he doesn't let go.
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