Chapter 5

Wedding Plans

"Well, I wonder what's going on this time." Jane wondered as she and Thor approached the Avenger's Tower. It was early in the morning and Thor received an urgent call from Tony. Thor and Jane took off the next morning to see what Tony Stark needed.

"It sounds pretty serious." Thor admitted. "As far as I know, things have been peaceful in the Nine Realms."

They walked into the tower and were led to a meeting room where Tony was waiting for them, as well as Bruce Banner.

"Banner?" Thor gasped. "It's great to see you, old friend!"

"You too. Congrats on your engagement."

The group sat down and were introduced to Doctor Strange. They discussed the Infinity Stones, and Thanos.

"Do you know anything about him?" Tony asked.

"Not much…but my father does." Thor replied. "He called him "The Mad Titan," he goes beyond the Nine Realms, wiping out populations across galaxies…" Thor sighed. "Many have tried to fight him, and many have failed." He turned to Bruce. "You were lucky to escape from him alive. How did you do it?"

Bruce lowered his gaze. "Loki released the Hulk, then he called the Bifrost to transport me here."

"Loki?" Thor smiled. "Of course, he did! Where is he now?"

"Well," Bruce hesitated. "There's something you should know."

~jb~

"Jenny?"

Jenny was stirred from her sleep when she heard a voice. It wasn't quite familiar, but she wasn't fully awake yet.

"Jenny…is that you?" The voice croaked again.

"Huh? What?" Jenny sat up and rubbed her eyes. She looked over to see Loki trying to get out of the hospital bed, but he was still hooked up to the IV.

"Jenny, where are we?" He asked, his voice was coarse. He began tugging at the IV. Now Jenny was fully awake and rushed to his side.

"No, no, no! Don't get up. Just lay back and relax, okay?" She insisted, urging him to lie down.

"What's going on?" He asked.

"We're in the Avenger's Tower." She replied. "Do you…remember anything from last night?"

Loki looked ahead, seeming to be lost in thought. "I remember…I was…" He rubbed his eyes. "I remember seeing the Bifrost…Heimdall found me…but…He was so far away; I couldn't hear him…I must have…fallen." He reached out and took Jenny's hand. "I…I thought I was dreaming last night…I couldn't believe you were real."

"Well, I'm real. And you're here now, you're safe." Jenny replied. "Loki…you don't have to answer…but…why did they do this to you?"

Loki hesitated, but shook his head. "It's kind of a long story…but back when I tried to destroy your city…I was being controlled by Thanos. He expected me to attack Midgard, wipe out half of the population, and take over…as an overseer for him. Then, I was to hand him the Tesseract after the job was done. Whether he would've left me to my rule or discarded me, I do not know. But I failed to complete the task he set out for me. Once I was back in his grasp, he decided to punish me, by killing me. And we Asgardians don't die easily, so he commanded it to be as slowly, and painfully as possible. The cutting, the beating, the poisoning…and this-" Loki pointed to his lips. "-was to take away my deadliest weapon. My words. Not to mention the starvation… it was worse than before… and yet…" Loki hesitated again. "And yet…there are many questions that remain… where was The Other?"

"The other what?"

"The Other." Loki repeated. If he hadn't been so weak, he would've stood and paced around the room. "He is a being that worked for Thanos. He was talented at inflicting mental pain… I guess if you have Ebony to execute all kinds of tortures, you don't need The Other."

"Who's Ebony?"

"A very talented being, that much I can say." Loki replied. He examined Jenny. "You would not like him in the slightest."

"I don't like anyone you're describing." Jenny admitted, clenching her fist.

"Hey, Jenny!" Jane's voice called from outside the room. "It's me and Thor…we brought breakfast."

"Oh… please come in!" Jenny said.

The couple walked in and Jane held a tray with toast, eggs, and bacon.

"This is for Loki…Bruce suggested starting with something light…until you get your appetite back. How do you feel?" Jane asked.

"Better." Loki replied, taking a plate.

"The Man of Iron said you couldn't even speak yesterday." Thor said.

"I was…in a state of mind…I thought I was dreaming…and my mouth was dry." Loki replied. "Oh…that makes me think of another question." He turned back to Jenny. "Of all the places Heimdall would bring me to…he chose here…I wonder why."

"Maybe…if someone were to look for you…Earth would be the last place he'd expect." Jenny suggested.

"You may be right again, Jenny." Loki complimented.

"You seem to be getting back to your normal self." Jenny returned. She turned to Thor and Jane. "I think he's gonna be fine."

"Agent Robinson, may I have a word?" Thor suddenly asked.

"Uh…sure, dude." Jenny replied, following Thor out of the room, leaving Jane and Loki alone. She began to ask him questions; "Are you hurting anywhere? Do you need anything…?"

Thor and Jenny sat in the lounge of the infirmary.

"Did he tell you what happened?" Thor asked. "Why this happened?"

"Yeah, we just talked about it…" Jenny replied.

"And…?" Thor urged, knowing he was closer to the answers he had been seeking for years now.

"Thor, there's something you should know about New York…" Jenny took a deep breath. "But I feel like it's not my place to tell you."

Thor nodded his head in understanding. It made him so happy to know Loki finally had a friend who respected him this much. "I understand, Jenny." He placed a hand on her shoulder. "But Loki doesn't trust me as much as you. That's why he's told you and not me… but I assure you, whatever you tell me, I will use it for the benefit of everyone- mostly Loki. I want to clear his name, and I promise you, that no matter what it is, I will reach out to him with compassion, all right?"

Jenny nodded. "Okay."

~jb~

"But why red? Everyone uses red." Loki asked. "Red and silver… just…why?"

"Thor and I both like those colors." Jane replied. "And hey, you would look good in red."

"What do you mean…I have to wear that?!"

"If you're coming to the wedding and being the best man, yes, you will."

Their argument was interrupted when Thor stepped into the room.

"Jane, could Loki and I have a minute?" He asked politely.

"Of course." Jane nodded and left the room.

Thor turned to Loki, then leaned in and embraced his brother. The sudden gesture startled Loki.

"What…? You big oaf! Get off me!"

"I'm sorry brother!" Thor said. "I am so sorry, I misjudged you."

Loki froze. Jenny must have told Thor everything… But Loki couldn't bring himself to be angry. His brother was hugging him for the first time in years…he was apologizing, admitting he had misjudged him. Thor had already known something was controlling Loki years ago, and now the truth had been brought to light, and the weight was lifted from Loki's shoulders.