35 : Faced with the Realm Eternal and Sid gets the jibblies.

The entire morning was tenuous.

Steve was fully dressed in his Captain America uniform and Sid might have stalled her morning routine just a little bit to watch him gear up. The way he moved, even doing the most mundane tasks was like a visual symphony. She shook the terror that was gripping her as she felt a distinct need growing in her chest. The tightness there didn't have anything to do with the troubling broiling heat in her gut, she just needed him.

Eventually she got herself dressed, pleasantly surprised by Steve's uncanny ability to lace up a dress and warrior's bustier. After he helped her secure her hair out of her face, they made their way to meet Thor in the hallway.

They gathered to meet Odin in one of his many consultation halls. In so far, no one knew precisely why Sid was there. Most assumed she belonged to Captain America and he had brought her along with Thor's permission. The rumor mill was abuzz, as it was wont to do in Asgard.

She was positively quivering by the time they reached the hall. Thor seemed perfectly content, strolling through the marble lined paths and having no terror over his origins and his life so far. A gentle hand laid on her back and she glanced up at Steve and he smiled beneath his Captain America helmet, a view that awed and excited her at the same time.

She tried to smile but it didn't come out very well, so she tried a joke instead, "I'd like to draw some eyebrows on that helmet. People would probably take you more seriously if you had angry eyebrows."

He rolled his eyes and shook his head as they continued to walk. Thor lead them through another hallway made of splendor and approached two large doors that he pushed through with a grin.

"Father." Thor grinned as he strode forward and hugged his father heartily.

Sid smiled for a moment watching the lovely reunion until a sharp pang hit her temple. She twitched slightly and when Steve glanced at her, she shook her head, begging him to disregard it. They hadn't gotten much sleep the night before and Sid was sure her exhaustion was weighing on her heavily in such a stressful situation.

"Father, I want you to meet my dear friends, Captain Steve Rogers, my shield mate from Midgard honorably regarded as Captain America. The other is a friend who has no known origin. She ran into the Captain's oldest, dearest friend and aided him. Because of her love and compassion for my friends, I have brought her here to seek an audience with you and the scholars about her ancestry."

When Thor introduced Sid, she stepped forward in unsure slippers and when Odin leveled his full gaze at her she actually faltered. Everything inside of her bottomed out and she tried her best to hide it, but with a twitch of his eye Sid was pretty sure he noticed. She cleared her throat and bowed deeply, having absolutely no idea what else to do, "I'm honored to meet you All Father." She rose slowly and tried to shake the cold creeping sensation that was slowly curling up her spine. "Thor has told me about the amazing scholars at your disposal and despite their genius, the scientists on earth could not accurately place where I am from. Though they believe I am essentially human, I have a certain make up and certain powers that lead them to think that maybe that's not all I am."

Odin frowned as he approached her and Sid did her best to keep herself still. It was difficult because every bone in her body felt hollow in fear, like a simple sneeze would bow her over. "You needn't fear me child." Odin mentioned softly in passing, a voice so deep and even that it should be reassuring. The tone did the exact opposite for Sid. He moved past her in effortless grace and approached Steve with a keen eye. The King reached out his hand to the warrior, "I have heard of your great battles. Thor promises me that your skill rivals that of some of my own warriors."

Steve blushed beneath his helmet but kept his warrior's frown and nodded, "I am extremely grateful for all you've provided for us." He shook the god's hand and felt a distinct drop in his ability to process the situation. He was shaking hands with an all powerful being. He cleared his throat, "Your son is one of my dearest friends and most trusted teammates. I thank you for teaching him to be not only an outstanding warrior, but an honorable person."

Odin scoffed slightly, "His own journey created his honor. I can only do so much as King and as his father." He glanced at Thor with a nod of approval and Steve could see how Thor tried to hide his smile. Steve looked at Sid, but she was still just standing there in her spot, unmoving. He wasn't sure, but she looked like she might be shaking.

"Demonstrate your gifts for me." Odin commanded as he rounded Sid and she jumped at the sound of his voice.

She nodded and glanced at Thor who pulled over a tray of different items with a teasing smile on his face. He was probably well accustomed to seeing people awed by his father. She shot him a weak smile, hoping he would continue to mistake her blinding terror for intimidation and eyed the items carefully, finding a distinct familiarity as she dug her fingers into the bowl of dirt. She looked at Thor surprised, "You brought it from earth?"

Thor nodded, "Tony and Bruce were unsure if you would be able to manipulate the elements of my home. Essentially we are all made up of the elements of the universe, just combined in different ways, but we will stick with what you know. We can experiment later." He winked.

Sid nodded and glanced back at Odin who was watching her in a way that felt far too intense. She placed one hand into the dirt and with the other, she dragged her finger in a line along the surface. When she reached the edge of the bowl her finger jumped and a stream of sand followed after it, swirling in a perfect replication of her finger's movements. She sewed her finger through the air, the dirt followed like a terraformed ribbon, dancing while Odin watched her carefully until she laid it all back to rest. Her hand went to a bowl of water next and she performed a similar trick, this time water trailed after each of her individual fingers, a stream of lines dancing around her in wonder before settling back in the bowl she tethered herself to. For air she reached out to Steve and he handed her a few marbles. In an act that looked specifically poignant to her, she spun the balls in a little vortex of air, swinging and swirling around each other at great speeds. Next was fire, there was a bowl of it and nothing else and despite the broken laws of physics, she just thrust her hands into the basin and pulled out two fists that were fully engulfed in the bright heat. She showcased her hands slowly and then combined the two flames into one and held an inferno aloft in her grip. Odin seemed to smile as she put it back.

She stepped back a little shakily, trying to get herself closer to Steve, even by an inch. There was something that was poking at her mind as she looked at Odin. She wasn't just intimidated by him being the god, there was something about him that terrified her.

"That's sort of the extent of it." Sid murmured as she edged towards Steve.

Odin stood slowly and eyed Thor seriously, "Take her to the scholars. Have your tests run. You know what should be done and they can give you further guidance. Report back to me when they have finished and we shall consult."

Thor nodded with a pleased grin, "I will Father."

Odin nodded to his son and to Steve, and then his eyes trailed to Sid, lingering on her for just a moment longer than she felt necessary. He began to walk from the room and Sid felt her entire gut twist, but she couldn't be rudeto the King who gave her food and shelter. She had thanked humbler people for much less.

"Thank you!" She blurted and then added to it in a last ditch effort, "Thank you, All Father."

Odin's lip hitched in a very faint grin and then he turned with Thor as they spoke in hushed tones, leaving Sid and Steve in the hall where Sid could finally take in a full breath.

Thor returned slowly, looking excited and encouraging, "I will show you to the institute." He nodded and offered Sid the chance to walk out first.

She smiled tightly, which Steve noticed, and hurried past, doing her best to keep her emotions under control.

When they reached the institute, Sid was absolutely flabbergasted. All thoughts of Odin absolutely evaporated as she strolled through the halls, leading to classrooms, libraries, and research rooms. She kept trying to step through individual doorways, instantly fascinated by each thing she saw, but Thor kept a firm hand on her shoulder to redirect her to their objective.

Steve stood back and tried to figure out what was wrong with Sid when she met with Odin. He'd seen her nervous, he'd seen her intimidated, he'd seen her angry, and everything in between. While Odin observed her, there was a distinct emotion that he was able to read in the tension of her shoulders or the unease of her jittery hands. Despite her everyday gracelessness, she poured everything into her movements, especially while using her powers. They might not have been full to the brim with finesse, but they were boundless with care. When he watched her somewhat haphazard manipulation of the elements, something he knew was natural and somewhat soothing for her, he realized she was scared.

He kept his mouth shut as Thor walked her through the process for testing. The scholars smiled affectionately at her as she asked questions, yearning to understand. They seemed pleased with her desperate drive to grasp at the complexity of the universe and ran with it. They explained the process to her rather patiently, detailing the types of things they were looking for, and how her body might react. There was clear care and respect for her as a patient and at least here, Steve could feel a little bit safer. She seemed more relaxed in the hands of space scholars.

After tests were concluded, she met with a few of those who studied magic. Steve and Thor sparred quietly in the ring nearby once she became too focused to even acknowledge them. The scholars tried to tap into her powers and Sid worked with them tirelessly, eventually stripping down to her basic tunic and the leggings she wore underneath her dress. She found quite a bit of difficulty in working with the elements of Asgard.

Eventually though, something seemed to click. Though she was nowhere near her proficiency with the elements of her own world, she found a distinct sort of challenge in moving the alien air in tight streams, holding the water into a form and molding it within her fingertips, desperately trying to hold the fire that licked at her fingertips just a bit too warmly, and kicking a chunk of rock at Thor and Steve who seemed aggrieved that it interrupted their sparring.

In the end, she was drenched with sweat and covered in Asgardian dust and grime. Her limbs were loose and her breathing was labored but there was an obvious grin on her face: she was pleased.

"Nice work out there." Steve finally commented after they returned to their room to get cleaned up.

Sid chuckled as she wandered into the bathroom, hopping into the bath. Steve followed a bit after, giving her some privacy, and then pretty much just wiped his face and neck clean in the mirrors lining the walls. "Thanks. It was an interesting feeling. Harder, but in a good way. It felt so much different from when I'm on earth, but I liked it."

"A new connection?" Steve muttered as he glanced at her reflection, one of her legs sticking straight in the air as she strained to reach for her toes.

She groaned and then gave up, nodding tiredly, "Yeah. New, but cool."

Steve chuckled as he turned and leaned back against the counter, starting to remove his Captain's gear. "I got to admit, this is a very interesting place."

Sid nodded, thoughtful. "Yeah." She added absently.

Steve laid out his clothing as he undressed leaving him in a skin tight shirt and a set of pants all created and managed by Tony Stark. It clung to him so tightly Sid wasn't sure how protective it could really be, but if she knew anything about Tony, he made it that tight on purpose just to spite Steve. The damn thing could probably stop a tank even though she could easily see the peak of his nipple poking through the material. She snapped out of her exhausted nipple trance when Steve spoke.

"So what's going on? You've been off since we met with Odin." He finally pressed, leveling her with a gaze that looked like he already knew.

Sid mentally cursed. "I don't know. I was just intimidated." She shrugged tiredly and then leaned back into the water, trying to dispel her severe unease in thinking about the all powerful god.

Steve chuckled, "I've seen you intimidated." He grinned as he sat on the edge of the tub but didn't look down at her. He was respectful of that level of privacy, despite Sid's lack of care for nudity.

She sighed heavily and glared at him as he stared at his hands. "Well, excuse me, little miss mortal, for being utterly terrified of the strongest man in the known universe." She replied bitterly and Steve flinched at the tone in her voice. He knew he struck a nerve.

"I understand that Sid, hell, I felt it too when I shook his hand. Could have messed myself I was so caught up in the grandness of it all." He pushed a little further when he saw her tiny grin, "But you were really scared Sid… What is it?"

Sid shrugged, pulling out something else that was bothering her, "Just made me think about Heimdall, how he wanted to kill me, said I shouldn't exist, something about Odin that he couldn't talk about. I was just sort of expecting the same treatment."

Steve exhaled heavily with guilt. "I'm sorry Sid. I shouldn't have pushed."

Sid sunk under the water a little more in shame. She hated lying to Steve, but she didn't know how to possibly explain that the All Father triggered every negative feedback loop in her body, "I know. I know you just care."

He finally looked at her and though he could probably see beneath the film of the water, he stared directly into her eyes without a hint of hesitation, "I do, Sid." He pat the side of the tub with a grin and stood slowly, "After you finish, we'll go get something to eat, all right?"

She nodded with a tired smile and Steve left her to relax. She sunk into the water and tried to quell the thumping of her heart.

Meeting Heimdal was surely a horrific experience, but she trusted Thor and realized this situation wasn't exactly ideal. The warmth of Thor and his friends seemed to be just what Sid needed to feel at ease again, but meeting Odin had pulled out a severe fear that crept into every crevice of her body and she was very much afraid of her current dwelling.

She wasn't sure what it was, but a little voice in the back of her mind screamed that something was rotten in the state of Asgard.

A/N

Sorry i didn't update last week. My computer was formatting stuff wrong and the websites were being weird so I gave up and decided I'd just give you two this weekend. We are a good 3/5 of the way into the story. EEEEEEEEEEEE stuff is happening!