Elise Milton barely slept on nights before big meetings, and last night had been no exception. This morning, she was awake well before sunrise, preempting her cell phone's alarm by a few hours. After her shower, she fussed for far longer than usual over what to wear. This wasn't just a meeting with the firm, after all. This was the mother of all meetings with the mother of all clients. Her boss, the firm's namesake, Skip Parmeri, attorney-at-law, would never take a pro bono case that wouldn't land his name in the news.
When she was done over-thinking, Elise shivered. She was standing in her skivvies in front of the closet in her New York apartment for which heating was too expensive. As she stepped into a four-year-old tweed shift dress - now snug as a result of constant munching throughout law school and drinking throughout the first year of her legal career – she told herself how lucky she was. This could be the big break she needed. Although truly, she had already been lucky before, and she knew it. Jobs for young lawyers were still few and far between, and she'd managed to land one not just with a law firm, but with one of the most well-known, albeit for many of the wrong reasons.
Once dressed, Elise glanced at her watch before she clasped it around her wrist – she had plenty of time to go before she had to leave. Normally, she liked having an hour to sit down and eat breakfast the way she imagined normal people did, but she was far too apprehensive today to enjoy the down-time. She paced with her bowl of cereal, taking small bites for her jittery stomach's sake, and flipped on the television to distract herself.
The TV only picked up eight channels; it was the most basic of basic cable packages. Unfortunately for Elise, all of the channels were news, and all of the anchors were talking about Parmeri & Associates.
"Last month we saw surprising protests surrounding Thor Odinson's return to New York with the woman rumored to be his girlfriend..." The gussied-up anchorwoman spoke the word "girlfriend" as though it were intriguing and unexpected. "...Jane Foster, and today, he's back to meet with the infamous Skip Parmeri and his legal team. You may remember Mr. Parmeri as the lawyer who represented a certain few of the big execs in the heavily-publicized financial debacle two months ago..." Did she actually use the word "execs?" Elise cringed as the anchorwoman went on. "And now, in what promises to be an absolutely groundbreaking trial, Mr. Parmeri's firm will be representing Loki Laufeyson as he is extradited..."
The sound of the anchorwoman's coached voice was grating, so Elise flipped the channel, where a far more politicized and compelling rendition was being given by a salt-and-peppered man in thick-rimmed, square glasses. The pundit on this channel had plenty of opinions of his own to insert.
"Really?" the man griped into the camera. "Are we really going to let this guy take advantage of our soft legal system when Odinson already has him locked-up out there in space, or wherever? Let's take a look at what Parmeri had to say about the extradition last week."
Elise tried to crunch her cereal quietly as she listened to her sweating, pudgy boss' impassioned speech.
"This isn't a discussion about the nature of Mr. Laufeyson's alleged crimes. This is about the basic rights of man. I don't care if it's another state, another country, or another world entirely. The same rules of justice have to apply. You wouldn't let your friend sit in prison in Iran without trial for a crime he allegedly committed on our soil just because his brother was president there, would you? Of course not. And we, Parmeri & Associates, are here to make sure that no matter what shape the law takes as we explore these 'realms,' justice will be served, and that starts with a fair trial for Mr. Laufeyson."
It was almost laughable, the way Parmeri acted as though this were a big human rights issue, but if Elise didn't practice not laughing at him at home, she'd never be able to contain herself at work. Skip Parmeri chased publicity. Wherever there was a big, famous jerk in trouble, Parmeri was there, dabbing his forehead with a monogrammed handkerchief and extrapolating on fairness and respect for the law. He was a dick, for sure, but apparently, he trusted Elise enough to put her in charge of this case, the big one, the case all of New York and probably America would be buzzing about.
But all that buzz made Elise uneasy. She checked her watch again – still, about half an hour before she had to leave. She rinsed her empty bowl out and placed it in the sink before setting her coffee maker up to brew. Once she'd put the filter, coffee, and water in the appropriate parts of the appliance, she switched it on. For a moment, it did nothing. Then, it gave a pathetic sputter before dumping ten coffee cups worth of water all over counter. Elise jumped back as it dripped onto the tile and filled up her high-heeled shoes.
"Shit," she muttered to no one. "Shit, shit, shit." There wouldn't be time to fix this after she went through the ordeal of choosing new shoes and cleaning up. She'd have to stop for coffee on her way. It was a good thing she woke up early, she told herself.
Elise grabbed her packed suitcase from her bedroom, threw her heavy coat on over her blazer, and prepared to leave. On her way out the door, she piled everything she needed into her large, cheap handbag. File folders, case briefs, a notebook, and a memorandum written in fluent legalese all went in, as did a large bottle of Valium tablets she'd been prescribed. This week, she might very well need them.
Elise found herself rushing. Perhaps she hadn't left herself enough time for coffee, after all. She was a terrible estimator of how long it would take to walk from one place to another, especially when she had to go out of her way for errands – or caffeine – en route to her final destination.
The long lines at Starbucks in the mornings made Elise uncomfortable. She hated being talked to while she waited. Instead, she made a slightly longer detour in favor of a bagel shop, one which had been unknown to her before a bad date she had there two weeks ago. It had been empty then, but this morning, the place seemed to have become the latest tourist attraction. Were cupcakes over? Were bagels the new thing?
Despite the crowd, the queue was moving quickly. Elise attached herself to the end of it, avoiding eye contact with anyone and everyone, pretending to text. A conversation started up behind her, prompting Elise to turn and gawk momentarily before returning to her phone. The participants were a man in a Yankees cap and a woman whose leggings seemed to be bursting at the seams with her heft.
"Thor's comin' today," said the Yankees fan. "D'you think we'll see him?" he half-joked.
"Nah, there's like a million people in New York," his companion responded. "No way we'll see him."
They were quiet for a moment, but when they started back up again, Elise continued eavesdropping.
"Whaddaya think about Loki there? That's not smart, bringin' him back here." Yankees-guy seemed nervous, but then, tourists always were.
"Y'know, I don't know," leggings-lady offered. "But it's like, everyone should get a fair trial, right?"
"Yeah," the man acquiesced. "I s'pose."
Elise scrolled anxiously through pictures in her phone while the shit-storm rolled on in.
"'Fair trial' my ass," some obnoxious, greasy man exclaimed.
"Hey!" a woman with a young child snapped. "Shut it, there's kids in here!"
"Free country, lady!"
A militant-looking young woman with a shaved head butted in. "It's not even a free country," she remarked, "especially if we're letting people get locked-up before they even get a trial!"
"Oh, please," some suited-up man half-shouted. He gestured broadly as he spoke despite the crowded environment. "None of those people who he murdered got a fair trial, why should he?"
Allegedly murdered, Elise corrected him in her mind.
"That's not even the same thing!" the bald woman retorted, but her words were lost in the chaos of a bagel-shop-wide debate.
This wasn't worth it to Elise, not even for the first cup of coffee of the day. She wanted to leave nonchalantly, as though it weren't because of the argument, so she sighed theatrically, muttered "I don't have time for this" just loudly enough for the people immediately around her to hear, and made her exit.
Elise's brisk gait brought her to the building that housed Parmeri & Associates twenty minutes before the morning meeting with the team working on Mr. Laufeyson's case began. She took the stairs to the fourth floor to kill time and burn off nervous energy. Just as she arrived at the summit, Skip Parmeri bumbled out of his spacious office, breathing heavily.
"Great!" Parmeri bellowed. "I'm glad you're here early, 'Lise. I like that initiative. That's why I hired ya."
"Thanks," Elise replied, trying hard to smile. He always called her "'Lise," but she hadn't been at the firm long enough to tell him not to.
"We've got a lot to go over before you go," Parmeri prefaced as he walked toward the conference room.
"Alright," Elise said, following him. "What's new?"
"Nothing new. Just some guests coming, and I want everyone to know, y'know, what their deal is. You especially."
Parmeri took his place at the end of the long conference-room table, expelling a sigh as he seated himself. Elise took the corner seat beside him and waited patiently while he opened a thick folder and found the right notes.
"So," Parmeri began once he found what he was looking for, "we've got one of those S.H.I.E.L.D. guys comin' in a few minutes. Guy's intense. I can tell you right now he's gonna try to keep you from getting alone with our client – don't let him scare you. You gotta get alone with Laufeyson so you can get the whole picture."
"Don't worry, I will." Elise said this despite her extreme trepidation about being alone in an enclosed space with a mass murderer who ran a ninety-nine percent chance of being found guilty at trial.
"And I sent an e-mail about this last night, because I didn't want all the associates getting all excited about it today, but Thor's gonna be here at the meeting before he takes you up with him." Parmeri gestured at the ceiling, as though Asgard were directly above the conference room. "Don't get all star-struck on me, okay?"
"I won't," Elise assured her boss, although she wasn't sure whether she'd be able to keep that promise.
"Good." Parmeri concluded just as the rest of the associates filtered into the conference room. Some of them stopped by Elise's seat to congratulate her with a pat on the shoulder or to wish her luck before seating themselves. She smiled and thanked them, but she wished she could excuse herself to pop a Valium. The meeting convened when Parmeri finished a text message and put away his phone.
"Alright people, here's what's on the agenda. You all already know, but 'Lise is gonna be the first among us to get her name out there in inter-realm law – that's what we're callin' it now – so today's a landmark day for all of us."
Polite applause trickled through the room, and Elise nodded graciously and awkwardly, mouthing "thank you."
"But we're just getting warmed up here, guys," Parmeri continued. "Laufeyson's gonna be extradited. That's happening. The details aren't all hammered-out yet about the how and when, but now we can focus on the actual case. We've got a lot to do while 'Lise is gone, and there's gonna be even more when 'Lise gets back. To start, we wanna be clear that there's gonna be no double-jeopardy, and..."
Elise zoned out once she realized that the content of the meeting wasn't for her. She was too distracted and too tired to listen attentively, and besides, she was out of here for the next few days. If she was going to get caught not listening, now was as good a time as ever. She let her imagination run amok, developing a mental picture of Asgard and running through what she'd say when she first met her client.
"Isn't that right, 'Lise?" Parmeri interrupted her daydreaming by mentioning her.
"That's right," she responded confidently. Despite not having heard what had just been said, Elise knew Parmeri was just looking for an affirmation. Bullet dodged, she sank back into her thoughts until the door to the conference room swung open, revealing their two guests.
Elise immediately recognized Thor. He wore the armor everyone saw him in on the news, and it made him look comically out of place in a room full of suits, as did his size. He dwarfed not only the lawyers, but also the man who walked with him. But that guy was distinguished in his own right – an eye patch was lodged beneath his furrowed brow.
"I hope we're not late, Mr. Parmeri," the man said, his voice tense and distrusting.
"Not at all," Parmeri responded smoothly. He stood, shook hands, and then turned to his employees. "Guys, this is Nick Fury. Listen up."
Fury failed to thank Parmeri and launched straight into his speech. "I hope you folks are pleased with yourselves. You got your trial and your media circus. But before you go ahead with this, there's some things you should know about Loki." He paused, examined the faces staring at him from around the table, and then asked, "Who's actually going to talk to him?"
Elise raised her hand slightly, leaning a bit to be sure she was in his field of vision.
"Just you?" Fury seemed dissatisfied with this.
Elise nodded. "Yup, just me. Is that a problem?"
Fury shrugged. "Could be. I can't predict how you're gonna be once you get in with him."
"She's gonna do great," Parmeri interrupted. "Don't psych her out."
"I'm not psyching anyone out, Mr. Parmeri. I'm just stating facts." Fury addressed the room once again. "Now, Loki – and I want to be clear, this is a speech for everyone's personal safety, it's not testimony, nothing like that – Loki's gonna be one of two ways with you. He might act real friendly, but that's not genuine. And you're gonna find that out real fast if you fall for it."
An overeager first-year associate's hand shot up. "Mr. Fury, are you trying to tell us that our client is a sociopath?"
"Like I said," Fury responded gruffly, "this isn't testimony. These are instructions."
The associate scribbled something down anyway.
"That's my advice to you all," Fury concluded, perhaps prematurely. "There's not much more I can say here. You've got me in a rough spot. My job is keeping you all safe, and everyone else, but I'm a witness here."
"Is that it?" Parmeri asked blithely.
"I guess so." Fury was already making his way to the door, stopping to clandestinely impart something to Thor before he was gone.
"Well, alright then. That was brief." Parmeri shuffled his notes around, then turned in his seat to face Thor. "You wanna go?"
"Yes," Thor replied in a clear, low timbre. His volume escalated as he addressed the room. "I am allowing Loki to be transported here to be subject to the laws of Midgard for two reasons..."
"Oh, brother," Elise muttered under her breath. Was he here to escort her or to berate the defense lawyers?
"First," Thor boomed, holding up one finger, "Know that I have allowed this merely to fulfill your people's requests. Your realm seems to have such faith in its own arbitrators. If this system is of such value to Midgard, it would be cruel for me to refuse this request."
"Wait a minute," Elise piped up. "Are you the judge, jury, and executioner in Asgard?"
A misplaced, proud smirk crossed Thor's face. "While the Allfather rests, I am."
It was no wonder, Elise thought, with a system like that, that the American court system was so willing to allow a request for extradition to go through. "Great," she smiled.
"Secondly," Thor went on, "I am allowing this so that my brother will know he is not wanted here in Midgard as its king."
Loki wasn't desired as a king, a president, not even as a manager of a McDonalds, not by Elise or anyone else. Still, Thor's second stated reason struck Elise as a bit mean-spirited. Fuel for the defense, perhaps.
"That is all," Thor announced. He remained just where he was, maintaining the posture he'd assumed while speaking as if expecting applause to erupt.
Parmeri checked his watch. "Well, that was short, too."
Thor looked to Elise, but did not address her. "Shall I take the maiden to Asgard now?"
"Yeah, you can take the maiden in a sec," Parmeri gently ribbed, "but can you give us a minute first?"
"Yes." Thor stepped out, shutting the door behind him.
"Okay," Parmeri started in a hushed tone, "I know I'm not the only one who thinks this is all pretty bizarre, but we've gotta roll with it." He leaned toward Elise and his voice grew even quieter still. "It's all on you, 'Lise. You're our boots on the ground out there. Don't let these jokers get in your head. Just get in there and find a way to get Loki off. You just gotta find that one little thing. And if you can do that, you're gonna go down as one of the best defense attorneys in New York."
"Thanks," Elise whispered, matching her boss' tone. "I think I can do it."
"Don't just think it, be sure." Parmeri leaned back, and his volume returned to normal. "Now get out there!"
Elise stood, pushing her chair away and picking up her handbag, coat, and suitcase.
"Have a safe trip," the older associate beside her said.
"Thanks," Elise replied quietly. "I will."