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Shopping with Fenrir, Hela, Sleipnir, and Nico wasn't as bad as Peter thought it was going to be. Sleipnir had to hold someone's hand throughout the trip, the small eleven year-old trembling ever-so-slightly as he stepped into the mall. Fenrir had finally managed to shift into his human form; a 6'1 young adult with silver hair and poison-green eyes, though he refused to speak more than a few sentences at a time. Hela made sure to keep a secure grip on Sleipnir's hand as the group walked, her other hand making sure her light brown hair covered the skeletal half of her face. Nico and Peter were talking about videogames, debating whether or not they should buy some new release then or ask Tony nicely for it later.
Hela, at first, was not interested in looking at any of the shops until she spotted a vendor selling nice-looking silk shawls of varying colors. There were many designs, each interweaving with each other as if they were telling a story, and the goddess knew she had to buy some right then and there. She told Sleipnir to go to Peter while she bought some items and the boy gladly took the teen's hand.
"Hello, miss," An elderly woman greeted, smiling kindly from where she was sitting on a stool. "See anything you like today?"
"Yes, ma'am," Hela responded, eyeing the designs once more. "I would like to get one for my father and grandfather."
The woman nodded. "I see. My name is Agnes. Each of these tell their own story and each, I like to believe, carry their own meaning. If you choose one, I will tell you about it."
Hela gazed back at the shawls, studying the patterns and colors. Her father Loki was a wonderful man, if not a bit broken. She wanted something that represented his fight for good and the progress he made from the beginning to now with his new family.
"You've picked a good one."
Hela looked over at the old woman and watched as she took the shawl out of her hands, running her fingers along the embroidery along the edges gently. Her smile was wistful, as if she could look back on the time she spent creating such a beautiful article of clothing and remember the thoughts that went with it.
"This is a road of redemption. The gold here," Agnes pointed at the top near the edge. "The way it rises and falls, represents past struggles and battles. The green of the overall piece means life and longevity and the way the gold blooms over the green like a flower shows the way the bad becomes the good."
Hela was speechless when the lady finished. It was perfect for her father. She knew that the god of mischief struggled to overcome his burdens from all that he went through, from losing his children to falling through the void, and he was making amazing progress. There were still moments where he would go silent, eyes distant, as if he was reliving the memories over again before he would shudder slightly before smiling at her like she didn't just see his pain. The world had wronged him many times over but he still prevailed, able to smile and laugh with everyone else and open his guarded heart bit by bit.
When Hela chose the next shawl, she knew, without even having to hear its story, that it was perfect for Percy. Still, she needed to confirm her thoughts that it was the right one, so she turned to the maker of such a beautiful garment.
The way her eyes softened when she gazed at what was in her hands was confirmation enough.
"It's the saddest piece, yet the happiest," Agnes confessed, running her fingertips over the purple designs. "I made it with the ocean in mind when I lived in Ireland years ago. The water represents chaos and stability, dangerous yet always there. The gold in this piece represents passion and wisdom, showing in a way how the wearer went through many struggles only to share what they learned along the way. The flowers- they stretch across the piece all over, nearly taking up the design- and they represent an outside influence that the wearer still hasn't been able to shake. However, the red begins to form around them and, although red may been seen as angry and harmful, this one is and always has been soothing. For the wearer, it represents healing."
Agnes took a breath, clutching the garment tightly for a moment before holding it out to Hela. "Whoever you choose to give this to, make sure you remember that, no matter how strong they seem, they're only human and need help, too."
Hela's hands shook when she held it and she couldn't even deny the way her voice wavered a bit as she spoke. "That... How much? For both of these."
Agnes smiled softly, like she could see how much both stories affected her, and gave a price that seemed too low for something as beautiful as the shawls in Hela's arms.
Hela made sure to tell her that as she gave her double the amount and more in the form of a tip. She had the money and, even if she didn't, she knew that her grandfather's lover would help her if he knew what it was for.
The garment-maker was shocked as she held the money in her hands before a small but soft smile came over her face. "Thank you. This is enough for me to return home."
"May your travels be safe," Hela responded and it almost came across like a vow. "Your work is wonderful and very beautiful. The whole world should appreciate it."
Agnes' smile grew and her eyes twinkled. "You are very kind but I think I will start with Ireland first."
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When Hela returned to their group, Peter could see that she seemed much happier than before. In a demonstration of their developing twin mental communication, Nico nudged her shoulder and told her 'good job' because he obviously knew whatever it was that she did.
After revealing what she bought, Peter, Fenrir, and Sleipnir echoed Nico's words.
Fenrir bought T-shirts in greys and blacks, though he did get one or two colored ones at Sleipnir's insistence. He seemed to have found a love for sweatpants and bought them in bulk, only belatedly remembering to grab two pairs of jeans and a pair of slacks.
Sleipnir, after tossing Fenrir a black dress shirt with a crescent moon on the pocket, gathered as many of the softest sweaters he could find and placed them in the cart. There were many pinks, greens, and purples, though he made sure to grab extra blue and red sweaters when Peter told him that it was Percy and Tony's favorite colors respectively. He did grab a short-sleeved baby pink dress shirt and a pair of black slacks to the pile just in case they had to leave somewhere nice.
Hela's clothing choices were half short-sleeved and half long-sleeved due to the fact that half of her body was dead and would concern anybody outside of the Avengers greatly. Still, she found a love for silky blouses, many of them neutral colored, and long summer dresses. She found the ones with floral designs to be the most pretty and they were the only colorful garments in her growing collection. Her formal outfit was a slim black dress that had a slit going up the living half of her body on the left side. With it, she purchased a slightly see-through red shawl (not as nice as the ones in her shopping bag, of course) with light colored beads to make it shimmer in the light.
"Is everyone done?" Nico asked as he held three aviator jackets that looked exactly like the one he was wearing.
Hela gave him a disappointed look.
He put one of them back.
Peter came bounding over with superhero hoodies and they all reached over to grab Iron Man ones like the growing army they were. It was black with the arc reactor in the middle and they loved it. Percy didn't have merch, therefore he was delegated to second best in that category.
Fenrir pointed out a hoodie that was black with blue lines going down the sleeves and along the bottom. They bought one for each of them in honor of Percy and solemnly made sure the cashier thought he was dead.
Happy picked them up when they were ready to leave, declaring Fenrir his favorite and allowing him to sit up front. Still, he let Sleipnir choose the radio station so they knew not to believe his words. When they got to the tower, Tony, Bucky, and Percy had yet to return but that was okay because Clint was playing Mario Kart in the living room and losing.
Bruce just sat on the sofa chair and laughed at him every time he lost because Natasha wasn't there to do it. He sipped tea like a god and ignored the actual gods that were bickering on the bigger couch about who was the one that ruined the latest load of laundry, turning all of the white clothes a strange red-green color.
Bruce decided it was both of them.
They believed him because he had the best track record of being right most of the time.
Nico joined Clint in playing Mario Kart while Peter helped Hela, Fenrir, and Sleipnir find their rooms and get settled in.
Parker made sure to show the son of Hades how disappointed he was with his eyebrows. Nico looked properly shamed.
Sleipnir wasted no time in pinning up all of the Avengers posters he managed to find at the mall while Fenrir and Peter set up his bed with his purple bedsheets. Hela lined up the stuffed animals along his dresser and tossed some of them to be placed on the boy's bed. He had a few action figures unboxed and stood on his nightstand like an upgraded version of a dream catcher.
When they finished, Fenrir's room was next, which was done pretty quickly. His bedsheets were black and his pillows were a light grey and he loved it. He had one stuffed killer whale and he put it on his dresser with an air of satisfaction. Peter climbed up the walls to line the edges of the ceiling with soft white fairy lights while Nico and Hela placed a fluffy grey rug on the floor. Sleipnir, meanwhile, was petting the killer whale and marveling at how soft it was.
Hela's room was decorated differently than any of them were expecting. Her bedsheets were a cream color and her pillows had floral print. She had bought a few succulents and flowers, placing a cute little one on her nightstand. She put up a puppy calendar and flipped to the current month, cooing silently at the baby Pomeranian featured. Nico and Peter put up a nice skull tapestry that had bright colored flowers coming from its eyes. Sleipnir worked on hanging up her clothes, setting aside her black Iron Man hoodie so they could all wear it when Tony, Percy, and Bucky came home.
The hoodies were not true to size and swallowed the five, the ends coming down to the middle of their thighs. They took the mature route and attempted to establish dominance and declare who was the leader of Team Iron Man in the form of a hoodie-sleeve slap war. Sleipnir decided to sit it out but Peter, Hela, Fenrir, and Nico were determined.
Peter was the winner but it was no surprise because he was the biggest Iron Man stan they knew. He was going to be the leader one way or another.
When Bucky, Percy, and Tony returned it was with the arrival of pizza and the five ran downstairs before Clint could eat it all in petty revenge for them all laughing at him at some point. While Percy and Steve attempted a civil conversation (i.e. Percy resisting the urge to bodily throw himself out the window), Tony looked properly charmed and maybe a bit teary-eyed when he saw the hoodies. Bucky just patted his back before asking them if they bought him one too.
They did.
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words: 2,093
song: the world was wide enough//soap mashup - shades_of_jade
pls comment what you thought uwu