A/N: Thank you to IHeartSPN for the review! It's much appreciated. I'll hopefully be updating more regularly, might even set a time each week to do so. Unusual for me, but would certainly be productive! (Plus, this is helping me continue my other story, Godless (Loki/OC), which desperately needs to be updated.
Four:
The Leak
Zora had just finished a holo-call with a former ambassador to the UN when her screen suddenly lit up with nearly a dozen reports. Then her office phone began to ring. Next, the holo-phone buzzed, quickly followed by her cellphone. And finally, FRIDAY pitched in: "Ma'am… I think there's something you need to see."
Feeling dread coil in her stomach, Zora held still for a moment. "Yeah, I was just thinking that." Gesturing to the ringing zoo that her desk had become, Zora asked, "Are any of these calls a priority right now, FRIDAY?"
"Secretary Michaels is trying to contact you on the holo-phone, but I think you will want to see the news first, ma'am. The story broke about thirty seconds ago."
The story? Shit.
"Bring the news up."
FRIDAY quickly opened a webpage on Zora's computer directly to the source: a CNN reporter somberly informing the nation that whatever programs had been interrupted were done so for an important message. Alien Spacecraft Lands at New Avenger's Facility: Asgardians Seeking Refuge?
Zora stared open-mouthed as the reporter mentioned several details that only the facility's staff, the Asgardians, and the Secretary of State's staff knew. The reporter ended their emergency broadcast with one question: Do Americans need to fear for their safety and the integrity of American borders in case of an Asgardian invasion?
Fuck. Fuckfuckfuck. This could not be happening.
Her phones started ringing again, all at once.
"FRIDAY?"
"Yes, ma'am? What is your desired course of action?"
"We have to do damage control. Immediately. And get Thor up here."
000
Arms crossed firmly over his chest, Thor stared gravely at the computer screen that Zora had angled his way as a video of the news report repeated. He had returned to his Asgardian dress – the dark armor sans the runed chainmail covering his arms or the velvet-red cape – and looked every inch the imposing alien king that he was. The very same alien king that the news was reporting on. Thor: Loyal Avenger or Invading King?
He muttered something under his breath in a language Zora didn't know. Turning to her, his every movement sharp and surly, he asked, "What are we to do about this?"
"I'm not sure yet," Zora admitted, pacing the length of her office. Her contacts had been discarded an hour ago – definitely not the only source of her current headache, but didn't help – and had been replaced by a pair of dark-rimmed glasses, which she would be more than a little embarrassed to wear around the thunder god if the circumstances were different. "That's why I called you up here. If I were to go on record and say something, it would just seem… dishonest. People will need to hear from you. And soon."
"Much sooner than we intended."
"Yeah. Which is a huge problem. Because if this story got to the press… that means someone leaked it. And the only people who know you're all here are those who live and work on this compound and a select number of people at the White House." Zora pushed her glasses, which had begun to slide down on her nose, back up with a huff. She paused in the middle of her office and glared at the computer screen, which had stilled on the big headline. "As much as the Secretary would love to see me crash and burn, I don't think he'd let this get leaked. It's not just the Avengers that would be held accountable. It's the American government, too. And I promised him that it would stay quiet."
Thor watched as she went back to pacing, eyes sharp, focused. "So you think it was someone here."
"Yes."
He seemed truly baffled. "Why? What would an employee have to gain from this?"
Rubbing at her temples, Zora stopped once more and sighed. "I wondered that, too, for a bit. But then I realized… Loki."
Understanding dawned in Thor's eyes. A frown tightened his lips and his whole body went rigid. "Loki." His hands clenched at his sides, but he remained calm – calmer than Zora. "You mean that someone who's seen Loki here, someone holding a grudge about the invasion, likely gave this information away."
"I think that sounds very possible. Given the circumstances."
Thor pinched the bridge of his nose and cursed to himself at the same time Natasha knocked twice on Zora's door and opened it.
"We have another issue," she informed the pair somberly, fixing Zora with a frown. "The Secretary is here."
000
"You fucked up, Haque, and now we have to deal with the consequences!"
Zora only half-heard this rampage as she tapped out messages on her phone: instructions for Thor, Natasha, and Vision each.
"I told you that if even one of them stepped out of line, there would be ramifications for you. Did I not?"
Tap tap tap. Her head was angled down towards the phone in her hand. It wasn't that she couldn't feel the several pairs of eyes on her – the Secretary of course wanted to shout at her in the central conference room, which enjoyed all glass walls that revealed the corridors around them, as well as the handful of Avengers staring them down just outside, protective and worried – but she was very, very good at ignoring them. Particularly when there was a crisis afoot.
"And I've got the president calling, wondering what my strategy is to handle this. Tell me, if it wasn't my leak, then why am I the one wading through deep shit to fix this mess?"
Messages sent. She had sent two to Nat – one for Natasha herself, another for Thor who didn't yet have a phone.
A fist slammed on the table right beside Zora, on the peripherals of her field of vision. She canted her chin and stared at the Secretary, who was fuming, with a slight raise of her eyebrows. "Is that really necessary?" she asked.
"Are you listening to a single goddamn word I'm saying?"
"Yes," Zora clipped. "And I've decided that someone needs to take your thesaurus away. How many synonyms of 'consequences' are you going to yell at me?"
The Secretary's face flushed red. Whether in anger or embarrassment, she couldn't determine. "As many as it takes for you to take this shitstorm seriously, Captain."
"I am taking it seriously." Folding her hands atop each other on the table, Zora tried to affect an air of confidence and calm that she didn't quite feel. "I've just sent instructions for my team to begin handling the problem. So let's define that problem, Mr. Secretary: someone leaked that the Asgardians are here, and now the press has citizens nervous about a possible invasion. This is a major issue, I agree, but it's not as bad as you're painting it. People know who Thor is. They trusted him to save our world twice over. They know him. Once he releases his statement to the press about why the Asgardians are here and what they intend to do, the panic will subside. That shitstorm you're talking about will be downgraded in a day. It'll be handled."
The man scoffed at her, straightening his posture so there was some distance between them again. "That's great news, captain, but in case you didn't notice, you've broken several laws now. And the public knows about it, so there has to be some accountability. Tell me – what would you do, if you were in my position?"
Zora felt a cold smile tug up her lips. "Is this another attempt to get me fired? Seriously? If you want Rogers back, that's fine by me – but you know replacing me isn't going to fix anything."
"I think it'd be a damn good start."
Ugh. And there it was again. Her job once more in jeopardy. How many times was that, this year? Five?
Suddenly, the door to the conference room slammed open hard enough that the door itself, and the glass wall it had connected with, spiderwebbed with cracks. The Secretary, startled, nearly leapt across the room at the sudden intrusion. Zora had to contain a smile. The hairs on her arms raised slightly – she knew who had busted in on this meeting without even looking at him.
"You will cease this useless prattling and leave the compound immediately," Thor demanded, his baritone rumbling over the words with an anger Zora hadn't heard from him before. When she glanced at him, she had to double-take: his eyes glowed, actually glowed, an electric blue, so bright that she couldn't even make out his pupils. His hands, clenched at his sides, sparked with muted, controlled electricity.
Oh. So he had changed. In a bit of a literal sense. Thor, God of Thunder, bereft of his hammer, had an entirely new weapon at his disposal: himself.
The Secretary came to this same conclusion just as quickly, and spluttered nonsense at the god before finding his words. "You can't make demands of me," he informed Thor, but there was a slight tremor in his tone. "You're not an American citizen. You're illegally on this soil and can be detained – "
"So detain me," Thor dared the man. Outside, a thunderclap sounded, directly overhead. "But leave her out of this."
The Secretary stared at Zora accusingly. "This isn't over," he growled out. He slipped past Thor and into the corridor with all the dignity he could muster.
Zora, still awed by the light show she was just given, stared at the god for several long moments. "So," she said, watching as his eyes once more cleared and became the intense blue she knew them to be. "Did you get my message?"
"Aye. And we're ready to release the statement."
"Good."
000
"Uh, Thor?"
The god himself was kingly as ever. Arms encased by the gleaming Asgardian metal he claimed was forged in the heart of a star, cape slung over his shoulders regally, posture confident and reassuring. There was just one problem.
"Yes, Zora?"
She smiled at him. "Can you maybe get the storm to, y'know… stop?"
It had been raging outside since he had burst in on her meeting with the Secretary a half hour ago, but it seemed that no one wanted to tell the thunder god to call it quits. She wasn't entirely sure if he had even realized what was happening or not – they had been busy getting him ready for his statement, after all.
A sheepish grin flashed on his lips as his eyes darted to the window, taking note of the high winds and bolts of lightning. "Ah. Yes." At his confirmation, the storm outside receded into… nothing. It had stilled so quickly that it gave Zora goosebumps. "My apologies."
"Now you remember what you're going to say?" Natasha asked, crossing the room adjacent to the public conference area Tony had set up for situations just like this one. Behind the door across from them was likely a hundred cameras waiting to snap photos of the king… and hopefully show that he was no threat.
Thor nodded. "Of course."
"Good. You're on in five." Nat left, intent on giving orders to a few other employees before they opened that door.
Zora remained at his side. His anger had subsided since earlier, but there was clearly something still bothering him. He stared resolutely at the door, as if through sheer will alone, he could make this entire problem go away.
"Hey," she said, quiet enough that those milling around them wouldn't hear. "I appreciate your help back there. The Secretary… he can be a lot to deal with."
Thor's brow furrowed with unease. "I do not like the way he was speaking to you, Zora. And I will not tolerate anyone who threatens you, mortally or not."
That was… extremely heartwarming. Too heartwarming. Zora turned her gaze to the ground, hoping she wasn't blushing at all. Ugh. "That's very kind of you."
He was giving her a strange look. Before she could ask him about it, though, Nat had called him to the door. It was time to reveal Thor to the world.
000
Zora had watched the press conference from the sidelines. Relief had settled over her like a comforting blanket – cameras loved Thor, of course. They always had and likely always would. And the press obsessed over him like a celebrity. The easy smiles, the words of reassurance, the air of regality. As far as crises went, this one had been dealt with almost entirely with just a few statements and smoldering looks from the God of Thunder. If only all problems could be solved this easily.
Of course, there was still the issue of who had leaked the information, which Natasha was quietly and quickly figuring out, and what to do with them. SHIELD's contracts with employees were clear: any leak of classified information resulted in jail time. A lot of it. On top of that, Zora had to worry about her next interaction with the Secretary. As much as she appreciated Thor busting in at the right time, she didn't hide from her problems and knew it was just a temporary fix. The Secretary would be even angrier next they spoke.
For now, she could put those thoughts aside. Nat would bring in the person responsible for the leak. The Asgardians were safe from public persecution. Things would get wrapped up soon and all this would be in the past.
As she began her nightly paperwork in her office, she tried to tell herself that she'd be happy to see Thor and the others settle in a New Asgard. To have them off the compound and let things get back to normal. She tried very hard to tell herself that, and failed.
A/N: Ahaha. Now we can get to the good stuff. The really good stuff.