So my little Thor soulmate AU was supposed to be a oneshot but it's completely run away with me! Here's chapter 2 in what's becoming a series of vignettes of Thor and his Soulmate attempting to navigate their new life together.
Summary: Picks up immediately after the first chapter. Thor's met his soulmate in the battle of New York, and now he has to keep her safe from the surrounding chaos. This becomes a great deal more difficult when she comes face to face with his exiled brother, Loki.
For a very long moment, Ellie just gaped up at the huge blonde beast towering above her. Forgetting how to speak, almost forgetting how to breathe, until she let out a very quiet "Oh…"
Thor grinned again, his palm cupping her face and taking her in. And Ellie couldn't take her eyes off of him. He was utterly incredible, looked more like a God than a man. His flowing blond hair, messy from battle; his dark golden skin, covering a firm muscled body that was currently holding her so gently, taking the utmost care to treat her almost reverently; and his bright blue eyes, an inhumanely beautiful aquamarine, staring at her as though he'd never seen anything more beautiful, as though he'd been waiting lifetimes to finally lay eyes on her.
And he had.
Suddenly overwhelmed with the fact that she was sitting in her soulmate's lap, that this incredibly beautiful man was fated to belong to her, Ellie felt a sudden overpowering urge to kiss him. She'd waited for him for so long, and he was suddenly here, all hers, and she couldn't fight the urge to press her lips to his even if she tried.
Except, Fate apparently had other plans.
Just as Ellie leant towards him, Thor's gaze dipping down to her lips, a loud voice sounded from behind them.
"THOR, FOR GOD'S SAKES!"
Several small explosions sounded, and Thor and Ellie both turned in time to see Tony shooting several more Chitauri who had emerged from around the corner. Satisfied they had all been taken care of, Tony spun around and the face plate of the Iron Man suit opened so he could speak to them.
"Thor, listen, she's gorgeous, I get it," Tony said, sending a wave to Ellie, "but we kind of have a situation going on right now so I need you to get your ass up before you get yourself killed."
As though shaken out of a stupor, Thor and Ellie both realised where exactly they were.
"You're right," Thor responded, tightening his hands on Ellie's waist and pushing them both effortlessly to their feet before pulling Ellie closer to his chest.
It was like he'd been pulled from a dream-state, and suddenly everything around him came crashing back into focus. The screams, the explosions- the battle of New York continued to forge on around them. Thor swore to himself- why now? Why did she come into his life now, at such a dangerous time? Could she not have waited?!
Immediately afterwards, he shook himself. Now may not be the perfect time, but it was the time that Fate had demanded, and he would never regret meeting her.
But now… what was he supposed to do?
Thor could already feel the physical effects of the completion of their Soulmate bond. His Mother had once explained to him that things would feel strange for the first few weeks after meeting his Soulmate, that their bodies would have to physically adapt. They'd lived for years (he, slightly longer than the average person) apart; their souls now had to adjust to the completeness of having the other. He felt it from the moment he laid eyes on her, a tightness in his chest, as though a string was coiling tightly around his ribcage and pulling him towards her.
The same string was physically holding him to her now. He didn't know if he could force himself away from her, every fibre in his being was screaming at him stay with her, don't let her go, never let her out of your sight, and all Thor wanted to do was obey. Even as he tried to be reasonable, to think logically, his instincts were attempting to beat all reasonable thoughts out of his head so he could focus wholly on her.
In all his years of living, Thor had never desired anything in the nine realms the way that he now did; all he wanted was to remain with her, to take her somewhere safe, to forget this battle, forget everything that wasn't her…
But he could not. The longer that they delayed, the more damage the Chitauri were causing to this world- his Soulmates world. Thor's brother was at fault for this chaos, had chosen this world because he, Thor, had loved this world so. He had a responsibility to these people, owed it to the humans to do all that he could to save them.
He had to stay and fight, and Ellie had to get as far out of the line of fire as possible.
"I have to get her to safety," Thor directed his words at Tony, who nodded.
"There's about five evacuation checkpoints being set up on the edges of the city; they're directing as many civilians to those as possible. If we keep the Chitauri contained in the inner-city streets, those will be safe spots. I can get her there and-"
"No," Thor interrupted. "That isn't good enough- if a single beast escapes our notice and reaches one of the checkpoints, it could take out dozens of civilians. I need her safety to be guaranteed."
Before Tony could respond, Ellie shook Thor's arm to get his attention. "No, Thor, you can't just ship me off somewhere, I want to help-"
"It's far too dangerous; you will be killed. These beasts are not of this world."
"They're destroying my home! I have a responsibility to do something."
A flash of pride reared up inside of Thor at his Soulmates warrior spirit. But a second emotion made itself known, overwhelming the first- a raw terror for her safety, and the fear of any harm coming to her. And that second emotion ruled his actions.
"You have a brave soul, Ellie," Thor said, allowing pride to colour his words before he suddenly turned serious. "But you are not a soldier, and you will be no match for these beasts. I understand your desire to fight for your home- truly, I do. But the Chitauri are bred for battle; bravery is not enough."
Thor felt a tightening in his chest as she shifted closer to him, and he lowered his voice. "I've only just found you. Please do not force me to watch you die in this battle. Please."
Ellie's gaze softened as she observed him. She asked quietly "what about you?"
A small smile worked its way onto Thor's lips. "I was bred for battle. I have fought beasts like this a thousand times; you need not fear for me."
For a long moment, Ellie just stared up at him. And then finally- she gave a nod of assent, and Thor felt his breath return to him in his relief.
He was about to speak, but was interrupted by Tony.
"…Um, do you two know each other?" Tony asked suspiciously.
Not breaking eye contact with Ellie, Thor said aloud "she's my Soulmate" and revelled in the elated feeling those words spread through his body. He would never tire of saying that.
"Oh, shit!" Tony cursed, his tone surprised. "Your timing is terrible, by the way, but congratulations, you two!"
Finally drawing his attention back up to the Man of Iron, Thor's hand tightened on Ellie's waist as he said emphatically "Tony, her safety is my top priority. Is there nowhere in this city that she will be safe?"
"Stark Tower," Tony said seriously. "Up in my penthouse. She'll be safe up there, I swear it; highest security of anywhere in the city."
"What of Loki?" Thor demanded.
"He left the tower ages ago; Romanoff said he's somewhere near Brooklyn, bringing down a building. I'll tell JARVIS to keep an eye on her, but he has no reason to go back there now that the portal is open."
Thor glanced back down at Ellie and realised that he very literally had no choice but to trust Tony in this moment, with this precious thing. Summoning all of his strength, Thor brought his hands up to frame Ellie's face and said emphatically "you must promise me that you will remain at the Tower."
"I- I promise," Ellie replied, nodding. Thor clutched her tighter against him for a moment, pressing a lingering kiss against her forehead before stepping back and dropping his arms from around her.
It instantly felt as though he'd lost a part of himself. Deep in his stomach, an unsettled feeling was growing, making him feel sick at the idea of parting with her, an overwhelming feeling telling him that this was wrong. His chest was tightening to the point of discomfort, almost pain, his blood pumping erratically as his Soulmark burned on his forearm, his Soulbond telling him don't let her go, don't let her out of your sight! But Thor pushed those thoughts and those feelings aside. He could not keep her with him in the battle, and he could not leave the battle to remain with her either. He needed to fight the Chitauri, to stop his brother, and to do that he needed her somewhere safe.
"I swear on the Allfather that I will come for you the instant the battle is done," Thor said solemnly, and Ellie nodded. "You will not be alone for long. I will see you soon."
"Please be safe," Ellie begged quietly, as Tony stepped forwards and extended a hand to her. Ellie waited until Thor had nodded his assent before she stepped into Tony's arms, her eyes never once leaving Thor.
"Wrap your arms around my shoulders and hold on tight," Tony advised, his face plate slipping back into place. "I recommend you close your eyes; this can be a bit of a bumpy ride."
From so high off the ground, the destruction of New York became so much worse.
Tony had taken Ellie to the penthouse at Stark Tower, some 140 floors above ground. Iron Man clearly lived quite the luxurious life; floor to ceiling windows surrounding the entire room gave Ellie an unparalleled view of the chaos going on around her.
Staring out now over the city, Ellie's hand shot up to muffle a choked cry. Her city, her beloved city… the violence was so much more terrible than she'd thought it was. Everywhere she looked lay destruction and ruin.
A sense of hopelessness descended upon Ellie in that moment, but she refused to allow it to linger. Hopelessness wasn't productive, it wouldn't help save her city. But the anger that quickly formed to take the place of the hopelessness… that would help.
Thor had been right when he had said that she wasn't a soldier, but god damn it, she couldn't just hide up here and watch the city burn, she had to help somehow- and if that was with a plank of wood and a mean right hook, then so be it, at least it was something.
Swallowing her resolve, Ellie turned and marched further back into the penthouse, her eyes desperately running over everything in the room for anything she might be able to use as a weapon. Down a few hallways, in what appeared to be an office of some sort, Ellie's eyes lit up as she hit the jackpot. Encased in glass, a baseball bat underneath a signed jersey. Wincing apologetically at breaking something of Tony Stark's that probably cost more than everything she owned, Ellie picked up a vase and used it to break the glass.
Now armed, Ellie headed back to the elevator in the main room. She had just pressed the call button when a thudding noise from the balcony caught her attention.
Spinning to see what had caused the noise, Ellie gasped and sprinted over to duck behind the bar, pushing her back against the cold wood and clutching the bat to her chest desperately… because out on the roof, a tall man in green and black robes with a tall, golden helmet had just appeared.
Ellie knew that his appearance could mean nothing good, because she'd seen him earlier. He'd been fighting with the Chitauri monsters, not against them; he'd been helping them to slay any humans that came across their path.
A voice sounded quietly from a speaker on the bar. "I've alerted Mr Stark to Loki's arrival; he'll be here momentarily," JARVIS said, and Ellie nodded, a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Iron Man was a brilliant fighter, but she didn't want him here… she wanted Thor. She wanted her Soulmate.
"Can you call Thor?" Ellie whispered, and a moment later JARVIS responded, "Mr Stark has alerted him."
Swallowing thickly, Ellie scooted closer to the edge of the bar and peeked her head out. The man was facing away from her, his arms leaning on the glass railing of the balcony, overlooking the battle.
He was important somehow; he had seemed to not only be fighting with the Chitauri earlier, but to be commanding them somehow. And he was right here, weaponless, his back facing her.
If she could take him out, perhaps it would give Thor and Iron Man and the others a chance to do something to stop the Chitauri.
Clutching the bat tighter, Ellie took a moment to steel her resolve. Then, she rolled over and crawled out from behind the bar, heading slowly towards the open door of the balcony. Taking care to be light on her feet so she was absolutely silent, Ellie slowly rose the bat and crept up behind the man. Just as she'd come within arms distance, she brought down the bat with all her strenth to hit him-
And the man spun faster than she could blink, one hand shooting out to grip her arm and stop the bat in its tracks, his other hand wrapping tightly around her throat.
"What a nice little surprise," the man taunted with a wide, wicked grin. "And what exactly are you doing all the way up here, sweetheart? Shouldn't you be down in the street, dying with the rest of your pathetic people?"
Furiously, Ellie made to yank herself out of his grip, but his strength was much greater than hers and he barely budged, simply squeezing his fingers tighter around her throat. He nodded down at the bat still clutched uselessly in her trapped hand, grinning.
"What was your plan, to beat me to death with a stick of wood? That's amusing, actually-"
His words broke off suddenly when Ellie tried to rip her arm away from him, causing her sleeve to fall down and reveal her Soulmark. His gaze and grip both slackened for a long moment… and then a truly evil glint came to his eyes and he let out a long, wicked chuckle which sent a chill straight through her veins.
"Oh, you've got to be joking," he laughed lowly. "You're it? You're Thor's soulmate? This is far too good to be true…"
Ellie refused to speak, instead fixing him with her fiercest glare. It didn't achieve anything; Loki merely laughed at her. "You're adorable, thinking you could ever be intimidating," he said flatly. "So, tell me: have you met your dearly beloved Thor Odinson yet?"
Maintaining her silence, Ellie continued to glare at him. Until his grip on her arm tightened, and he twisted painfully. Letting out a pained scream, Ellie was pulled into his waiting arms.
"Answer me, mortal," Loki snapped, and she shook her head.
"No, you have not met him, or no, you will not answer?"
Ellie's mind was racing a million miles an hour, trying to fight through the haze of pain in her arm. What does he want to hear? He knows Thor- seems to hate him- wants to hurt him- which means he'll hurt me- but which answer will keep me alive for longer?!
Feeling Loki's hand tightening against his wrist again, Ellie tensed against the heightened pain and cried out "No! No, I haven't met him, I don't know him!"
A low chuckle rumbled against her and Loki's grip turned gentle, his hand around her throat coming up to softly, almost lovingly, caress her face and coax her gaze up to meet his. "You cannot lie to the God of Lies," he said softly. "But no matter; you need not worry, I will not harm you until my brother arrives. I want him to watch as I rip your beating heart from your chest. How does that sound, lovely girl?"
Across the city, Thor and Tony were already on their way back to the Tower when all of a sudden, Thor let out a shout, his grip on Mjolnir slackening as he toppled straight out of the sky.
"Thor!" Tony shouted, dropping down to the roof that the God had landed on.
A coil of anxiety had been growing in Thor's stomach ever since he had parted with Ellie, slowly growing stronger every moment of their separation and urging him, almost begging him to leave the battle and find her, keep her safe-
Until that very moment when the coil had turned into a sharp, stabbing pain in his chest, and he somehow knew without any shadow of a doubt that Ellie was in indescribable danger.
If Thor had found his Soulmate under different circumstances, he would have had the time to begin to understand the physical way that the Soulmate bond manifested itself, the way that Soulmates bodies reacted to each other. But instead, he'd found her in awful circumstances and immediately had to send her away. Thor had assumed that the anxiety at leaving her had been due to a general fear for her safety, but he knew now that that was untrue.
The things he'd been feeling were not his own emotions. His uneasy feeling had been stemming from the Soulmark, which had been screaming at him for the past half an hour, desperately trying to make him understand.
He did understand now.
It was a warning.
His Soulmark had been telling him this entire time that Ellie was in serious danger- but he had ignored it, and now he may be too late.
Ellie's breath hitched, unable to tear her eyes away from the mad man in front of her. He'd just threatened to rip her heart from her chest and he was smiling, as though he couldn't dream of anything more amusing.
Swallowing thickly, Ellie choked out "I'd prefer if you didn't rip my heart out." Loki laughed delightedly.
"I am sorry it has to be this way," Loki said, shrugging and not sounding at all apologetic. "It's really nothing personal against you; I actually find you quite amusing. I'd keep you around if I could, but this opportunity is simply too good to pass up."
Loki's gaze drifted above her head, and a predatory grin stretched across his face. "Here's your darling Thor, now," he whispered silkily against her ear. "Looks like your time is up already."
A heartbeat later, a loud BANG! sounded as Thor landed on the balcony. "Loki!" he shouted furiously, aggressively striding forwards. Thor came to a full halt when Loki reached down and plucked a small knife from the holster at his thigh, spinning Ellie to face Thor and bringing the blade up to rest at her throat.
Thor's glare narrowed on the weapon, before drifting to Ellie, and finally to Loki. His muscles tensed furiously as his grip tightened on Mjolnir. "Loki, your actions thus far have been awful, but to touch her is unforgiveable and you know it," Thor all but snarled. "To threaten ones Soulmate warrants death on Asgard; get your hands off of her!"
In the centuries that Loki had known his hard-headed brother, in all the battles they'd fought together and all the struggles they'd faced together- Loki had not once seen Thor this angry. A shock of thrill ran through him at this latest amusement, and Loki tightened his fingers on Ellie's throat, causing her breath to hitch.
"Loki!" Thor shouted, raising Mjolnir.
"Your sentiment is showing, brother," Loki mocked, grinning against the girl's temple. "But the romance of the situation isn't lost, even on me. To find such a treasure in the midst of battle- and she is a treasure, isn't she? Just your type. Beautiful, but not very clever. She tried to attack me with a wooden bat- I'm sure she thought it was very brave, but it was rather idiotic, and a move that was very reminiscent of you. After all, you, too, have always masked your stupidity as bravery."
They descended into silence, only broken by the distant sounds of the battle far beneath them, and Ellie's hitched breathing.
"I wanted you to witness this; my triumph," Loki said more quietly. "My army will be victorious, I will take this planet for my own. And you, dearest brother, will watch me kill your Soulmate."
Thor blinked furiously, his fingers tightening on Mjolnir and his eyes darting between Ellie and Loki, desperately trying to think of some miraculous way to stop this. But there was nothing; Loki was too close to her, his knife already drawing a thin trickle of blood from Ellie's throat. Any move against his brother would end immediately in her death.
"Do you really hate me so much?" Thor asked helplessly, his gaze coming down to lock onto Ellie's terrified one. Ellie Brookes, his Soulmate. 863 years he had waited for her, dreamed of her, loved her, and now his brother was one flick of his wrist from tearing it all away, less than an hour after he'd found her. "You know what she is to me, what she means… why would you do this?"
"Because I do hate you," Loki said simply. "I would draw no greater pleasure than to watch you suffer. And do you know what I think, Thor? I think that you don't deserve her. You don't- oof!"
Utilising Loki's distraction, Ellie brought her elbow down hard and hit him in the side, stealing his breath. Instinctively loosening his grip in his surprised state, Ellie used her advantage to spin in his arms and knee him in the crotch.
A heartbeat later an arm was on her waist, and Thor was pulling her desperately out of his brothers reach, shoving her safely behind him. Loki ducked back to his feet just in time to block a punch from Thor, and Ellie stumbled over to her bat. It would be all but useless against Loki, but it was better than her bare hands.
In the end, it proved fruitless. Despite Thor's best efforts to keep Loki from getting back near her, a moment later a slimy hand tightly gripped her arm.
"KILL HER!" Loki roared, and a second later the Chitauri that had managed to sneak up behind her had picked Ellie up, and shoved her bodily over the edge of Stark Tower.
"NO!" The yell ripped painfully from Thor's throat as he made to dive over the edge after her, but Loki tackled his brother to the ground. Thor scrambled back to the edge, desperately shouting her name, as far below them Ellie's terrified screams suddenly cut out.
About 80 storeys further down, Tony glanced down at the girl in his arms, thanking whatever God was listening that he'd arrived at the Tower just in time to see the Chitauri throw her off the balcony.
"Lord, you're trouble for such a tiny thing," he commented idly, as Ellie clutched desperately to the iron suit, her breathing erratic. "But I guess it comes with the territory; your Soulmate is a God, after all."
"He's a what?" Ellie choked out.
"Oh, you don't know?" Tony asked conversationally, his voice lilting up in amusement. "That will be a fun conversation."
Tony flew them back up to the penthouse, delicately dropping Ellie beside Thor before bringing his blasters up and firing full strength at Loki. The God of Mischief was thrown backwards with the force of the hit, shattering the glass window behind him and flying into the penthouse. Tony stepped through the broken glass, following Loki, determined that the tricky bastard wouldn't be getting away from him again.
"Ellie-" Thor choked out, wrapping his arms around her and clutching her desperately to his chest. His breathing stuttered out heavily against her hair, as Thor tried to make sense of the fact that she was in his arms, and tried to erase the horrifying sight of her body disappearing over the ledge moments ago.
"Oh my God," Ellie choked out, her hands shaking as she reached out to grip at Thor's armour. "I just got thrown off a building."
"I'm sorry," Thor stuttered, "I'm sorry- I'm so sorry, I should have been here, I should have kept you safe-"
Despite the terror still coursing through her body, Ellie shook her head vehemently. "Thor, no, it's not your fault," she insisted, bringing a hand up to thread through his hair and drag his forehead down to rest against her own, her tearful gaze meeting his own rather watery one. "It's okay, I'm okay- I'm alive-"
"You're alive," he repeated, breathing shakily as his heart continued to race. She's alive- Allfather, what would he have done without her-?
They remained like that for far longer than they should have. Thor was needed in the battle below, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not drag himself from her. He remained on the balcony of Stark Tower, his Soulmate clutched in his arms as Thor slowly managed to convince himself that she was fine- and that no harm would ever come to her again. He would make sure of that.
When Thor was called back to the battle, he took a shaken Ellie with him. He would not let her out of his sight- not again. He would rather have her by his side in the thick of the battle than away from him where he had no way to protect her.
And she had fought valiantly for her people. A handgun from Tony's stash in the Tower had served her well, and when the bullets had run out, she had used anything from the rubble of destroyed buildings that she could fashion into a weapon. Thor had never strayed more than an arms-length from her side, ensuring no harm came to her, but despite the alarming odds against her, a girl who looked as though she'd never seen a single fight in her life, she was clearly destined to be a warrior.
Of course she is, Thor mused proudly to himself. She's your Soulmate.
The battle ended soon after. Loki had been subdued, and Tony had very nearly died in the effort to close the portal. But they were alive- all of them- and as the Chitauri all dropped dead around them, and the humans of New York emerged from their hiding places, Thor allowed himself to consider what that meant.
His eyes dropped to the tiny human standing by his side, her head barely reaching the middle of his chest, her hand clutched in his as she stared up at where the portal had just disappeared. A squeeze from Thor's hand caused her gaze to shift to meet his, and she swallowed thickly.
"Is it over?" she asked quietly, and Thor nodded.
"It's over," he confirmed, and Ellie nodded.
"Good," she replied, throwing herself at him at exactly the same moment that he reached down and pulled her against him, their lips locking together in a desperate kiss.
Dropping Mjolnir to the side, Thor brought both of his hands up to wrap around Ellie's waist, hoisting her feet right off of the ground. Her lips opened to him and his tongue pressed against hers, a feeling of rightness coursing through his bloodstream and muting the underlying panic he'd felt ever since the moment he'd watched her topple off of the tower.
In the past two hours, Thor had found his Soulmate, he had lost her, and then he had regained her. But now, despite everything, she was safe, alive, and in his arms.
And he never planned on letting her go again.
