Hi guys! So now it's out there! Tessa is actually Loki's twin sister! Ugh, you have no idea how bad I've been wanted to get to this part! I really hope you all like where this new revelation takes Tessa! Oh and just so you understand….even though her real name had been revealed, she'll still be referred to as Tessa, as it's the name she had grown comfortable with. Though, there will be one person who calls her Rania ;) As always, I fully acknowledge that I hold no ownership or rights over Marvel and it's characters. And now you can dive back in! Enjoy! Xoxo-NickyLynn
Tessa drew in a deep breath as she looked up to the sky above. It had been nearly two weeks since she had been rocked with the knowledge of her parentage, and while she still found it a lot to take in, she at least felt ready to accept it. She looked over at Thor, not bothering to hide her nervousness. "You're sure you're ready for this?" he asked her. While Thor was more than happy to finally bring her home to Asgard, he understood her desire to take things slow.
"No." said Tessa, looking back up to the sky unsurely. "But I've already made up my mind." She told him with a nod. "I…I've spent a long time wishing to know where it is I came from." She told him honestly. "I'm not going to let something as silly as nervousness stop me from finally meeting my family."
Thor smiled down at her, before looking up to the sky as well. "Heimdall!" he called out. Tessa watched as a bright speck of light blinked into existence in the night sky above. The light grew in size and brightness as it traveled through space towards them. "You might want to hold your breath." He said before the light grew so bright that Tessa couldn't look up at it anymore. It bathed them in its illuminance as it fell upon them, and suddenly the ground felt like it had been swept out from under Tessa's feet. She and Thor were swept up into the sky, traveling through space along the Bifrost.
Tessa's eyes moved around the at the bright colors passing by so unbelievably fast, and it left her feeling dizzy. It was like she was hit with the world's worst case of motion sickness as her body tried to process the foreign feelings. She squeezed her eyes shut and held her breath while she waited for the strange feeling of traveling through space to pass. She suddenly felt ground beneath her feet again and she stumbled forward and would have fallen if not for Thor's arm holding her steady.
"Are you alright?" She heard him ask. Tessa cracked an eye open, and then another as she realized they were no longer in the strange beam of rainbow light. She sucked in a sharp breath as she steadied herself and tried forcing the dizziness back down.
"I-I'm fine." She told him with a shaky voice. It was then that Tessa finally took a moment to look around her surroundings. They were in a golden dome, with a raised pedestal in the center, where a man with dark skin and the most fascinating eyes stood, with his hands on the hilt of a large blade. He pulled the sword out of the floor where it had been stuck, the energy around them dying down as the Bifrost was deactivated.
Tessa stared over at the man hesitantly as Thor ushered her forward. "Tessa," he began, using the name she had insisted on, as she was just not ready to be called anything else. "this is Heimdall. He watches over the nine realms."
"Welcome home, Princess. I'm very glad to see you returned to Asgard. It is a joyous day for our kingdom, indeed." Heimdall greeted with a tilt of his head.
Tessa blinked over at him, the title feeling wrong to her. "Oh, please, call me Tessa." She told him. "And thanks." She added. "It's….well, it's strange, I won't lie, but I'm happy to have the chance to come to know the realm I was born from." She told him. "And I'm glad to meet you."
"I'm happy to be of service to you." He told her with a bow.
"Does the Allfather know of our return?" Thor asked him, stepping forward.
"Of course, they have been making preparations all day." Heimdall informed him. "I believe they await you in the Throne room."
"Marvelous." Thor said with a smile. "Come, Tessa, let me show you Asgard." He said, motioning for her to follow.
Tessa began following behind him as he made his way towards the wide exit. Tessa turned towards Heimdall one last time before she left. "It was nice to meet you Heimdall!" she called back to him. He gave her a warm smile before she turned back around and jogged to catch up with Thor. As she walked out of the dome, however, she stopped dead in her tracks. She looked out at the realm before her, and her eyes blew wide in wonder. Stretched out for miles before her was a long bridge, that seemed to glow with the same shifting colors of the Bifrost which had brought them there. Beyond that were endless waterfalls, dropping down into what looked like an endless void. In in the middle of everything was Asgard. Golden and bright and….breathtaking.
Tessa could hardly believe her eyes as they took in the tall, beautifully crafted buildings, stretching high into the sky and shining like a beacon. Tessa had several times wondered what Heaven looked like….for it was suppose to be the golden city of light, but she doubted even Heaven could compare to Asgard's glory. It was absolutely radiant.
Tessa's mouth had gone dry as her jaw hung open in awe. When she heard Thor's chuckling from beside her, she pulled herself out of her revie, snapping her jaw shut as she tore her eyes away and over to him. "There's nothing else quite like it, is there?" he asked her, amusedly.
"It's beautiful." She told him, walking over to him. She looked up at the large horses he was walking over to and paused. "Please tell me we aren't riding those." She said, looking up at them nervously.
"It's a long way to the palace from here." Thor told her. "Unless you'd like me to carry you and use Mjolnir to fly us over there." He offered with a raised brow.
Considering her history with people carrying her while flying, Tessa didn't jump at the offer. "No, the horses are fine." She said, stepping hesitantly toward them. "I just….I've never ridden one." She admitted as Thor placed a foot up into the stirrup and swung his leg up and over the large beast.
"Don't worry, you can ride with me." He told her with a smile, extending his hand down towards her. Tessa placed her hand into his and let him pull her up and onto the horse, sitting down in the space in front of him. "Hold on tightly!" he instructed as he brought an arm around her midsection, and took the reigns into his hands.
Tessa looked down at the horse in front of her, not knowing where to place her hands. "To what!?" she asked Thor before he let out a shout and brought his heels into the horse's sides, spurring it into a run. Tessa let out a yelp as the horse took off in a gallop, its feet clicking against the bridge below. She grabbed a fistful of the horse's mane, not knowing what else to grab, and clamped down with her thighs, praying she wouldn't fall off.
It took them only a few minutes to make it to the city, but it was far too long for Tessa's liking. She wasn't sure what she disliked more, the horse or flying. When Thor slowed them down to a canter as they entered the city, Tessa's eyes bounced around to all the buildings and people they passed, every new sight intriguing her as she studied the new world. She caught sight of people staring up at her, and as she and Thor would pass, they would lean in close to each other and whisper amongst themselves. Tessa was very aware that they were talking about her, and her nerves began to rear up full force again. She did her best to keep her eyes cast forward as they made their way towards the castle, careful to avoid any eye contact with the curious Asgardians.
By the time Thor had pulled them up to the palace stables, Tessa was about ready to crawl under a rock and hide from all the prying eyes. She was suddenly self-conscious and aware how very different she must seem to them all with her strange hair and Midgardian clothes. She took Thor's hand as he helped her down with a smile, then led her into the large palace doors as a young man came out and took control of the horse. Once they were inside, Tessa's eyes bounced around in wonder again at the marvelous architecture and décor surrounding her. Everything was carved into perfection and painted the most beautiful of colors. She had never been in anything even close to this grand, and she found herself marveling at everything she came across.
Thor would point out something here, or something there, giving her the history or significance of it, and Tessa did her best to keep up with everything, but she was having a hard time storing everything properly as she was also entirely focused on the whispering lingering in the halls around them. Women who moved out of their way as they came down the hall, would lean in close to one another and giggle as she passed, something that Tessa found difficult to ignore. The deeper into the palace they got, the less people they passed, which Tessa was thankful for.
When Thor led her through the large doors that opened up into the throne room, Tessa's insecurities were swept under the rug again as she looked around at the beauty of the room. There were high golden pillars reaching up along the length of the room, connecting to a ceiling painted as beautifully as the Sistine Chapel. There were murals depicting Odin, Frigga, Thor, and Loki, along with various others she couldn't identify, obviously signifying important events in Asgardian history. She peeled her eyes from the ceiling as they strode down the golden floors and Tessa began wondering just how much of Asgard was actual gold. The beautiful patterns laid out in the marble floor under her feet, stretched out to a set of stairs that led up to what she assumed could only be Odin's throne. It was massive and very much fit for a God.
Tessa's eyes landed on the man sitting in the throne and the woman standing beside him, and she stopped. She had been mentally preparing herself for two weeks in preparation to meet her parents, but seeing them there, watching her, it left her feeling panicked. A thousand insecurities and worries spun through her head as she stared up at her awaiting parents and she couldn't breathe. Thor placed a hand down on her shoulder, reassuringly, as he noticed her trepidation. "It's okay." He told her, with a comforting smile. He began pulling her forward again and her feet began walking again.
As they came up to the bottom of the steps, Thor and Tessa came to a stop. "Mother, Allfather, I'd like to introduce Tessa." He said, his hand squeezing her shoulder tenderly. "Tessa, this is Odin and Frigga."
Tessa wasn't sure what she was supposed to do. She had never met royalty before, let alone royalty from a different realm. "I-It's nice to finally meet you, your majesties." She said, dipping her head down in respect, suddenly wishing she would have asked Thor what customary greetings entailed when addressing royalty.
The woman, Frigga, began walking down the steps and Tessa watched in nervousness. She couldn't help but compare her flowing blonde hair to Sarah's, but that's where the similarities ended. She looked like a radiant goddess as she swept down the stairs in her golden gown. Her face was beautiful, that was certain, but most of all it radiated kindness. She held a smile that only a mother could hold as she walked down the steps and came to a stop in front of Tessa. Tessa was frozen in place as Frigga hesitantly reached forward and brought a warm hand against her cheek, caressing it. Her eyes moved about Tessa's face, studying the changes that it had been filled with. A smile lifted her lips as tears began to pool in her eyes as she touched the daughter she had thought lost forever.
Tessa's mouth dropped open, but no words would come out. Without warning, Frigga swept Tessa up into a tight embrace, not being able to hold back any longer. She had spent a millennia wishing to hold her only daughter again, and to have her in her arms again brought tears falling from her eyes. "Oh, my dear, I've missed you so much." Frigga said, her voice as gentle as a melody.
Tessa couldn't stop the tears from falling from her own eyes. She had spent so long wishing to know the love of her mother, and to feel her arms around her. To know them now filled her with something she didn't even know she was missing. She wrapped her arms around the woman and sobbed into her shoulder.
"It's okay." Frigga soothed, as she pulled back. She ran her hand down Tessa's white hair, as she gave her a warm smile. "You're home now." She told her. "You're home."
"I'm sorry I can't remember you." Tessa cried out, feeling awful that she could have forgotten the kind woman before her, who so obviously loved her so much. "I-I wish I could, but I can't. But I've spent so long wishing I could." She told her.
"There now." Frigga said, wiping the tears from Tessa's face. "We may have been lost to each other, but no longer. You're here now and I look forward to getting to know the woman you have become."
Tessa let one last sob out before she reeled back on her emotions. Frigga was right. There was no use in spilling tears over forgotten memories. They had time to make up for all those lost years now. As she calmed her breathing and wiped up the last of her tears, Frigga moved to the side as Odin stepped down the stairs. Tessa looked up to his worn face and white hair and matching beard and couldn't help but think that he looked so much frailer than she would have thought. Yet, there was still an air of authority around him as he walked with his mighty staff, and she knew he was not one to go up against. She watched him descend the stairs and she didn't honestly know what to feel. While Odin was the father she had always yearned for, there was a part of her that couldn't help but lay blame on him for what had become of Loki.
During the last two weeks, while Tessa was adjusting to the news, Thor had filled her in on nearly everything she had missed. He told her everything that had happened with Loki and why he had felt forced down the path he chose. And while Tessa knew that Loki's choices were his alone, there was a part of her that blamed Odin. She watched him as he came to a stop in front of her, his stern eyes taking her in just as she was taking him in.
"Daughter, I welcome you back to Asgard." He said, casting his arm out. "It has been far too long since I have laid my sight upon your beauty."
Tessa's cheeks burned, not having ever been used to compliments, let alone from a father. "Thanks." She muttered to him, not knowing what else to say.
"Thor, perhaps you could escort Tessa to her rooms? Perhaps she would like some reprieve before this evening's meal." Came Frigga's request, noting her daughter's uneasiness.
"Of course." Thor said, sweeping forward and offering his arm out for Tessa to take hold of.
"Oh, thanks." She told him, grabbing hold of his large arm. "It was truly wonderful to finally meet you." Tessa said, looking back at her parents.
"And you my dear." Frigga said with a smile. "We'll see you again this evening."
Tessa gave her a nod as Thor led her back out of the large room. Tessa was so busy replaying the meeting in her head that she hardly took note of anything else as Thor led her through the halls of the palace to the royal chamber wing. As she followed behind him, he pointed out his own rooms, their parents' rooms, and finally where her rooms where, which happened to be directly across the hall from Loki's chambers. As Thor opened the door and guided her inside, she looked around and was surprised to find that things were set up as if someone still lived there. "Is….is this all my stuff?" she asked, looking around the room at all the trinkets and such filling the shelves.
"Of course. Your room has been maintained since the day you left." He informed her. "We had hope that you might one day return to us." He said.
"Oh." Tessa said in amazement, surprised that they had still kept her belongings as they were even after a thousand years.
"Tessa." Thor called, bringing her attention from the bookshelf she was investigating to him. His face was drawn down in seriousness, something that Tessa rarely seen in him. "I know this all must be strange for you, but I just wish to tell you that I am glad you are home. I am glad to have my sister back." He told her, his mouth lifting up in a warm smile. Tessa moved over to where he was standing and wrapped her arms around him. He brought his arms around her as well and she suddenly felt dwarfed in between his large arms.
"I think I'm going to like having you a brother Thor." She told him honestly, before she let go and slid back out of his hold. She looked up to find him beaming down at her happily.
"I'll come back and escort you down to the dining hall in a few hours." He told her with a nod before turning and heading towards the door. Tessa called out to him just as he pulled open the door again. He paused with the door held open, turning and looking at her expectantly.
"Thanks for bringing me home." She told him, trying to hold back the emotions that were lapping under her surface. Thor gave her another warm smile before he continued out the door and pulled it shut behind him.
Once he was gone, Tessa let out a breath and turned back around. Her eyes drifted around the room, to all the items laid out around the space. She began walking about the room, picking up this item, or that, twisting it in between her fingers, trying to elicit a memory attached to it, but no matter how many things she picked up and studied, they all remained somebody else's belongings to her. No memories came, no feelings were provoked, there was just….nothing. After about an hour of scrutinizing her belongings, she moved out onto the attached balcony and found herself marveling at the sight before her again.
She lost track of time it seemed, as while she was sitting on the ledge of the balcony, a voice spoke from behind her, startling her out of her revie. Tessa jolted forward and would have fallen from the ledge if she had not had the power to teleport herself back onto the balcony. She looked over at an equally startled Frigga and felt bad for scaring the older woman.
"I'm sorry." Tessa told her. "I didn't hear you come in."
"Oh, no, I'm afraid I should be the one making the apology. I didn't mean to startle you so." Frigga said, a ghost of a smile pulling the corner of her lip up.
"Yes, well, I'm sure even if Thor had been storming through my room I would not have heard. I was lost in thought." Tessa said, her eyes moving back over towards the glory of her home world. "It's so beautiful here…I just don't understand how I could forget a place as brilliant as this." She said, voicing the same thought that had been bothering her for the last hour.
"The mind is a tricky thing." Frigga said, trying to ease her troubles. "Do not torment yourself over things you had no hand in. You are here, seeing it now. That's all that matters." Tessa looked back over to Frigga and the warmth she emanated. "I've come to escort you to dinner myself, if you would permit me." She then said, motioning back towards the room with a hand.
"Oh, yes, of course." Tessa said. She followed behind her mother as she made her way back through the chambers and down the long winding halls of the palace.
"Are your chambers adequate?" Frigga asked as they pushed further through the halls, Tessa desperately trying to store the layout of the large palace into her memory. "Are there any other comforts you require?"
Tessa couldn't stop the laugh that bubbled up out of her, causing Frigga to stop and look at her in alarm. "I'm sorry." Tessa said, apologizing for the concern that Frigga must have felt. "It's just that all this," Tessa said, motioning around to everything surrounding them. "is more than I could ever even dream of. I've never had anything so lavish in my life." She told her. "There is not a single thing I could think to ask for beyond what has already been given to me."
"Oh." Frigga said, the smile returning to her face as she continued her trek. "I am glad then." She said. "Will you tell me of your family on Midgard?" She then asked. "Thor tells me you have a brother."
"Well, when I was found as a child, I was brought into a hospital, it's a type of healing center." She added, knowing Midgardian terms probably confused Frigga as much as Asgardian terms confused her. "One of the nurses was a woman named Sarah. She was kind enough to bring me home with her. She raised me with her son, Steve. Her husband had died in battle and so it was just her and us two children." She explained.
Frigga slowed to a stop, her hands twisting together nervously. "And…was she….was she good to you, this Sarah?" she asked hesitantly.
Tessa could only imagine what Frigga must had been feeling, knowing someone else had mothered her child when she could not. Tessa gave her a smile in understanding. "Sarah was kind and gentle. It takes a strong woman to take on another child, given her hardships, let alone a child as complicated as I was. I am very grateful for all she has given me, though I could never bring myself to call her my mother." Tessa said.
"Forgive me for not knowing, as Midgardian years are so different to Asgardian ones. Is she still alive? I would very much like to pass on my gratitude." Frigga said.
"No." Tessa said. "She died many years ago now."
"Oh I'm sorry to hear that." Frigga said, moving forward again. "But her son, he is still living? Thor said he fought along side him in the battle against Loki."
"Steve…" Tessa began, unsure how to explain his strange circumstances. "Well, it's complicated. I had thought him lost for a long time, but yes he's back now. He's always been very good to me, too. He's my brother whether connected by blood or not."
"I'm glad you found a family, even if it could not have been ours." Frigga said as she pushed open a large door and the smell of food filled the air. Tessa's eyes landed on the long table of food and her mouth nearly dropped open in shock. When Odin had said feast….he had meant feast. There was enough food to feed a small army, more than Tessa had even imagined. Each dish looked more delicious than the last and her mouth began to water in anticipation. Frigga guided her to the end of the table where Thor and Odin were already sitting. Tessa sat down in the seat across from Thor as Frigga took the set next to Odin.
"Whoa." Tessa said, finding no other words to describe the vast amount of food laid out before her. Tessa's plate was filled with dish after dish, Thor pointing out which ones were his favorite. She tried filling her plate with small bits of everything she could manage, but there was so much that she doubted she would be able to try them all. The tastes were even better. Bite after bite, she found herself letting out moans of enjoyment as she did her best to get through her massive plate of food.
Halfway through the meal, Odin cleared his throat and brought her attention down to him. "So, Thor tells me you are a warrior on Midgard." He said, looking down at her in intrigue.
Tessa's eyes bounced around to find all three faces watching her expectantly. She swallowed down the food in her mouth, washing it down with a gulp of wine she had been given and cleared her throat. "Yes, though it's a profession that was kind of forced upon me, rather than a voluntary choice." She responded. "I wanted to be a healer." She told them, trying to decide the best way to relay her story. "When I was younger I joined the war, as I wanted to help heal those injured in battle."
"Well, that's a valiant profession worthy of praise." Frigga complimented.
"Yeah, well Hydra-the, uh…the bad guys, they captured me and a lot of other men. They experimented on me and caused me to change." She said, trying to simplify things as much as she could. "So now, I'm this." She said, drawing on her power and letting her skin glow as she raised a hand up to examine. She let out a humorless laugh as a revelation occurred. "I suppose it's because I'm Asgardian and not human that the experiments worked on me and none of the others." She said, the statement made mostly to herself. She dropped her hand as the glow faded, suddenly not so hungry as painful memories began to fill her.
"She's quite fearsome in battle." Thor said, drawing her attention over to him. "She took on Loki by herself."
"Well, that's quite impressive indeed." Frigga praised. "Loki is not one to trifle with on a battlefield."
Tessa bit the inside of her cheek as her thoughts shifted to Loki. She drew in a breath and look down to Odin and Frigga. "I…I was hoping I could see him." She told them, not sure how they would respond to her request.
"Loki?" Frigga asked in surprise.
"What in Valhalla for?" Odin asked.
"Well, Thor said it was him that found me. If he hadn't told Thor about me, I'd still be on Midgard, completely unaware of who I am. I just thought…" she began, really not sure herself why she wanted to see him. "I just wanted a chance to speak with him is all."
All three members of her family looked down at her, each with differing looks. Thor looked surprised, yet pleased. Frigga looked sad. And Odin…well, he looked confused. "Loki waged war with your realm and killed countless of innocent people in the process. Yet you still wish to see him?" Odin asked.
Tessa swallowed nervously. "Yes."
Odin studied her for a moment, weighing his options. As he couldn't see the harm in granting her a visit, he agreed, though not happily. "I'll see what I can arrange."