"Why does she always do that?" God bless Kuro. Taking a sip of his brandy, he braved a look at his new teammates. He couldn't comprehend why the easily excitable healer was such an absolute dumbass. No one else could understand that either, even her best friend.
"Do you mean how she throws herself into dangerous situations because, in her mind, none of her friends would have to worry about her, or do you mean how she gives so few fucks about her own safety that her friends are forced to worry about her constantly and develop grey hairs at the young age of twenty-three?" Ahmed groused. He took a swig of Sanjeevani's cheap vodka and combed his fingers through his beard.
Havardr giggled quietly at that, shaking his head. The girl really did have a problem with throwing herself into danger and not caring about her safety. He couldn't tell if it was her confidence that she could heal from anything or if it was her fear of watching her loved ones get hurt. Maybe a mix of both?
"Both," Kuro nodded. "What's the point in getting hurt and putting yourself in danger when you're trying to protect people? That seems really counterproductive."
Eddie sighed, shaking his head. "It is. None of us understands why she's like that."
The Asgardian in the room raised an eyebrow, smiling curiously. "Venom? Can you tell us anything about her brain?"
"No. She said I couldn't, and threatened to make me eat spinach if I tried to say anything. I don't know how she would even do it, but the way she said it made me believe her. Leave me out of this," came the grouchy response from the grouchy alien. Eddie just snorted. "Very clever idea," he admitted. "Maybe I should try that." Venom hissed at their host in extreme displeasure, growling.
"Don't even think about it, bitchboy." Havardr began coughing, and Ahmed nearly choked on his alcohol. Kuro's face turned red from trying to not laugh.
"You're getting much ruder the more time we spend in France. What the fuck have you been watching while I sleep?" Eddie probed.
Venom just gave their usual monstrous grin and hiss-laughed.
Havardr very suddenly clutched his head, hands digging into his skin to find the source of the searing pain taking over his mind. It was less a random near-deadly migraine sent by a demon and more a painful psychic intrusion into his head.
And then he heard the voice. That asshole.
Dr. Strange spoke warmly in his mind. "Hello, Havardr."
"Former neurosurgeon, Doctor Stephen Strange. Good to finally meet you. I hear you've been trying to convince my friend to betray me," he spit back. He hoped the other man could hear the venom in his voice. Havardr had very little regard for people who tried to use his friends to hurt him.
The doctor returned the response with a huff. "Havardr, this is a matter of international importance. You are powerful, and that concerns the UN. We want you to go home to your family so we have an accurate understanding of New Asgard's numbers."
"Oh, so more people have run away from my old home? Yeah, it definitely makes sense that you want to send so many people back to that miserable place."
With a sigh, the Sorcerer Supreme replied calmly. "I asked Loki's help with this. I cannot speak on your wavelength without his magic, and this message is important. Are you aware of your and Sanjeevani's importance? Has she told you the details?"
This was not good. What wasn't she telling him? But he trusted his friends the same way they trusted him. So Havardr replied in the only way he figured would protect him and his friends. "Why does that matter?"
Strange laughed icily. "So she hasn't." Fuck- "Let me say it simply, Havardr. You two are very important to the Sorcerer's Guild. We need you two to stay separate for a period of time so that we can-"
"Fuck off, Stephen. I already made a promise to her that I wouldn't leave her. So I won't. Now mind your business and go back to fixing the world. Things are not as sunshine and rainbows as they used to be, and I think that's your job." Havardr was absolutely fuming. First they ask his friend to betray him. And now, they ask him to betray his friend?! What the fuck was wrong with these people?! He came to understand that humanity greatly valued loyalty and honesty and trust. But that directly contrasted what he was witnessing at the moment.
Strange took a moment to think about how to convince the Asgardian to go with the plans he, Loki, and the other human sorcerers had concocted.
Now, the plans weren't evil or anything. But those two kids posed a great threat if they decided to have any kind of violent altercation. Not that they would directly affect the world in any way.
Being the Divine Positive and Divine Negative gave them no advantage over the rest of humanity or the rest of the existing enhanced individuals, but because both of them had their own powers and magic, the Positive and Negative aspects of them could be stronger than the sorcerers anticipated upon that discovery.
The only thing he had to fix immediately was his previous statement to Sanjeevani. He'd told her it was more a human thing than a universe thing, which was wrong. But he was sure she hated him now, and she would use that one mistake to discount the rest of the plan. The girl wanted a reason to not help him. She had one. She would love more. He couldn't let the whole thing fall apart.
He decided to just alter a few parts of the plan. Hopefully Wong and Loki wouldn't destroy him for it. "Fine, then. Stay with her. But every time you have a mission outside France, could you send us a signal? Havardr, this is for your good. For Sanjeevani's safety and well-being. For the world's safety and well-being. I know you don't want to go back to your family. I won't force you to, but this mission, this plan that the sorcerers and I have, this is important. This is incredibly big, and we need both of you to comply and work with us."
Havardr scowled however he could. He didn't know if he was even awake anymore, but he didn't trust anything Strange said. He didn't trust anyone from the Avengers or anyone who worked with them. They'd been tracking him since he left Norway, and he'd avoided them so far. And now they wanted him to help them track his friend?! "Why should I help you?"
Strange smiled. Now, finally, the boy gave him a clear path. "Because I can promise you that we will never, ever bother you, your friends, or your family ever again if you help us with this thing."
Havardr clenched his jaw. "I don't believe you."
"Fine. Don't. At least believe Loki. He's the one who's been keeping the Avengers as far away from Paris as possible because he wants to let Sanjeevani grow into a hero on her own time. And he's the one who keeps telling us to stay away from you. I swear by the honor of Kamar Taj's fallen sorcerers. He really does just want to help you two. And asking you to do this is part of his help."
Now, this. This was interesting. Havardr had no reason to trust Prince Loki after everything he'd done to Asgard and to humanity. How could he now trust the man who'd betrayed his family and home in favor of helping Thanos and his army? But even still, Loki had offered himself up to save Thor. And he'd helped to evacuate Asgard's people when Hela was wreaking havoc. He'd even spent much of his last few years on Asgard teaching Havardr how to properly use magic. That knowledge was invaluable to the now-liberated former Royal Guard. And Loki really had been protecting Sanjeevani, for whatever reason. If the master magician wanted to stop her or Havardr, he could have done it with ease. Like taking candy from a baby. But he didn't.
"If I'm going to help you, I need you to swear on your own life. Swear that you will protect me, that you will protect Sanjeevani, and that you will protect all of our friends. And I mean ALL of them. Even a single mishap, and I will hunt you down like a prized boar. You understand that?"
Strange beamed. Oh, this was perfect. Loki was going to kiss his fucking shoes. The Sorcerer Supreme was going to spend a whole day gloating.
Havardr scowled. This was a disaster. Sanjeevani was going to hate him. But if he wanted to avoid stressing her out, maybe he could stay silent for this one…? But she told him about Strange's plans. He owed her the same kind of honesty and openness.
The former surgeon held up his hand while standing in the Sanctum Sanctorum. Loki gave him a weird look, but he ignored it. What a funny moment. Really brought him back to his days as a medical student, practicing the Hippocratic oath in his bedroom in front of the mirror. He'd memorized it in about twenty minutes, but it was just fun to pretend he was saying it formally.
"I understand. Havardr of Asgard. I, Stephen Strange, Sorcerer Supreme, promise that I will function within my capacity to protect you, Sanjeevani, and all of you two's friends. Should I fail to uphold my promise, may Fate take my soul as punishment for my broken oath." It was at least five minutes before Havardr spoke again. "Is that a sufficient promise, Havardr?"
Only a few words. "Yes. Now go away."
"Of course."
And the headache subsided into something way more comforting. Icy fingertips, warm palms, and a frantic voice. Wait, frantic voices aren't comforting. Havardr's eyes flicked open, and he glanced around anxiously. His eyes landed on the face hovering above his. Sanjeevani let out a tearful whoop of joy, pressing her face into the crook of his neck. He sighed. This girl. "It's okay. I'm okay. I'm okay. Just relax…" She shook her head adamantly, huffing.
"No."
"Okay." And he petted her hair until she calmed down. She rubbed away the redness in her cheeks. "What happened to me?"
Eddie Brock then responded, patting Sanjeevani's back to calm her down. "Relax, kiddo. He's fine now, thanks to you. Just chill." He locked eyes with the Asgardian. "You passed out. Your face scrunched up real bad and then you were on your back, knocked out. What happened?"
Havardr had to make a choice then. Tell them about Strange's weird little plan or keep them focused on their actual goal so that they could stop GL from destroying more kids' lives?
"No clue. Suddenly my head started hurting, and I couldn't figure out how to stop it. I felt like I was going blind from the pain, and now I suddenly wake up like this. Is everything okay in here?" he asked while knocking on his temple. He was more referring to his head, guessing his healer friend had been trying to figure out why he'd passed out. Sanjeevani nodded with a doubtful pout taking over her face. She didn't believe his lie. Was it because she had access to his mind? Did she already know everything that happened with Strange and Loki?!
"Everyone out," she ordered with a sad sigh. "I need to talk to him in private."
Kuro smirked teasingly, pulling at a strand of her long hair. "How do you know we won't be listening in?"
She side-eyed him. "Because if you try, I'll come out there and shut off your sense of hearing. I know how to, and I'm not afraid to." Her fellow vigilante jumped back a few paces and hid behind Ahmed's tall form, sticking his tongue out at her. Ahmed rolled his eyes.
"Get out, guys. She's not afraid to whoop you guys, and I will not be held liable for you idiots not listening to her. Come on."
Eddie rested a hand on her shoulder, and the two held each other's eyes for a few minutes, not speaking. Just watching quietly. Havardr had to smile. The older man cautiously patted her shoulder before Venom drew themselves out from his hand, nuzzling the heroine's cheek with a low growl of something Havardr couldn't hear. She laughed brightly, kissing the alien's bulbous head with a sweet little peck, so maybe it was something nice or funny.
"Thanks, V. Love you."
Venom scowled. "I am hundreds of millions of years old. I eat people alive. I have broken more bones in other people than you have in your entire body. I do not love."
Eddie rolled his eyes. "Stop being mean. Tell her you love her too, asshole."
Venom grumbled back a quiet, "Fine. I care for you, little injury-fixing human. Because you give me chocolate and don't bitch at me like Eddie does." With a laugh, Sanjeevani pushed the corporeally-cohabitative couple out of her door. She made sure to lock it before taking a slow stroll back to her bed, where Havardr lay like a damsel in distress, a throw blanket over his legs and two pillows under his head.
He sat up so they could actually speak comfortably. And instead of taking the throw blanket for herself and getting comfortable in it, she made him scoot over and draped it over both of their laps. She let down her hair by combing through the tight braid with practiced, strong fingers and watched him carefully. "Tell me everything."
His heart rate spiked, and she smiled. "Can I kiss your cheek?" He nodded cautiously and leaned in so she could get closer easily. She pressed her lips to his cheekbone, and he let out a sigh he didn't know he was holding.
"You knew, didn't you?"
Sanjeevani sighed against his face, all warm humidity and the scent of vanilla and lemon. What time was it? Had she eaten a lemon bar? What kind of person has dessert in the afternoon? How had she even had time to eat dessert before coming back to heal him? Dessert was a dinnertime thing in Asgard, not a snack time thing. Humans are weird.
She pulled back and put both hands in her lap. "People tend to betray me a lot. Usually adults that I consider parental figures. I've just come to expect it at this point. I knew Strange knew I wouldn't let him or the Avengers get to you. It was only a matter of time before he asked you to help him get to me." That was depressing, Havardr noted. But he was pretty familiar with that feeling. So, as a means of comfort, he reached forward and held her hands to his cheeks. She smiled and shrugged a bit more softly. "In the end, I'm not that surprised."
The former guard sighed, letting his hand press hers harder against his face. She smiled. They pressed their foreheads together. Well, that felt familiar. "He asked me to send up a magical signal every time we had a mission outside France. He said Loki was asking us to do this too, for our own good or something like that." Sanjeevani opened her mouth to ask a question, but he shook his head and held a hand up. She hushed up and watched him carefully. "I don't know why. He never said anything beyond 'It's important', and I was getting suspicious. He swore on his life that he would protect us and our friends if I helped him with this."
She breathed slowly, maybe to calm herself. "So what do we do now?"
He smiled. "They're not the only ones with planning skills."
She raised an eyebrow and then grinned wider than he did. Messing with the Avengers' plans? Sounded like a lot of very dangerous fun. It would be a lie to say Sanjeevani didn't love the little edge of danger that came with her kind of fun.
"So what are you thinking?"
Havardr wiggled his eyebrows, making her choke on her spit while laughing. "How good of an actress are you, Sanjeevani?"
Havardr really was such a theater nerd. Neither Sanjeevani nor anyone else in their team expected that. But he was.
What a massive nerd, Sanjeevani noted. Of course, it was absolutely adorable to watch him write out a full script with stage directions, but she didn't know he was so adept at creating plays. "Where'd you learn to do all this stuff?"
"We have theatre productions in Asgard too, Sanjeevani. Earth does not have a monopoly on the fine arts," he'd drawled with an unamused smirk. She pouted. How was she supposed to know that?!
And then she read the script. "You're a poet laureate, my dude. What the fuck?"
He laughed at her and watched as she kept reading with wide eyes and amused smiles. "Thanks?"
"So when are we gonna put this into practice?"
He sighed. "Well…" He didn't say anything for at least three minutes. She stared at him, an eyebrow raised. Havardr grumbled. "I have no idea." It was her turn to laugh at him.
He pouted at her in response and crossed both arms. Of course, that dissolved after she grinned and leaned her head against his shoulder, playing with his wrist for some reason. The tattoos fascinated her.
Sanjeevani took a few seconds to think and hummed out an old Hindi song she didn't know she remembered. "I might have a plan for that. You know how I've been getting calls and stuff from different dance schools and Indian culture organizations around France? Oh wait, maybe you don't know. I haven't told you any of that, have I? Maybe I just forgot. Either way, I'm gonna start participating in their programs and getting some extra cash. Show off as much as I can. If my name spreads, I'll get opportunities abroad."
Havardr grinned. "And with those opportunities might come obligations. 'Please, oh please, great dancer, come join our program. We'd be honored to have you perform for us!'" She giggled, nodding.
"Exactly. And when Sanjeevani goes abroad, so does the White Witch. So long as we keep them separate as much as possible, keep the White Witch activity on the down-low, we can drag the pin around the globe and keep the sorcerers guessing." Havardr had smirked at her plan.
"I didn't know you had so much experience fooling big scary adults."
Her big, genuine smile melted away into something more stiff, more mechanical. She faced forward and stared at nothing. Her eyes were elsewhere."It's just survival. Had to learn to work around my parents' strict guidelines and bullshit, so I made my way around. You know how it is."
He nodded his head slowly, still observing her profile. "Yeah."
Sanjeevani shook her head and sighed, turning to gaze at him. "You okay?"
Havardr bit his lip, shrugging. "No idea. I should have been there…done more."
She smiled with her eyes. "Not even you're powerful enough to break through that barrier, Havardr. You may be an impossibly strong Asgardian with all kinds of fancy tricks. But magic still has limits, from what Strange has told me. Don't feel bad. I shouldn't have abandoned you the day you left your home. I should have done something, but all of that was out of our hands. But we're here now. We have our promises to each other. We'll be okay."
He hummed. "How do you know?"
"Because it's all I can do. Just hold on until the day ends. And do that the next day. And the next, and the next. If I get bogged down by fear, I'll stop moving, and that's dangerous in this world. I die if I stop moving."
Havardr smiled brightly. "Like a shark?"
She nodded. "Like a shark." A pause. "Although, that's a bit too dramatic for me. I'm less of a shark and more of a tired swan. It's fun to show off, but man, I can get real angry, and life is exhausting."
"Tell me about it." She opened her mouth to reply, and he put his hands up. "Figure of speech."
The healer sighed in relief. "Thanks, man. I honestly just can't tell sometimes."
He chuckled. "Same here. It gets annoying, doesn't it?"
She groaned aloud. "Why can't people just talk normal?! It's so exhausting trying to figure out what people mean when they talk in proverbs and shit."
"I have no idea, but I am certainly tired of it. Asgard was a bit better about figures of speech, but my peers were always assholes about it, talking in the new lingo when I couldn't understand what things meant. My sister was nice enough to translate, but I just got annoyed and stopped hanging out with people my age."
"People suck."
He could only nod in agreement. And suddenly, she yanked herself out of the bed and jumped towards her backpack, eyes wide and manic with some kind of inspiration. "Havardr, I just got a GENIUS idea. I would love to talk more, but I think you need some rest after Strange's whole thing, and I need to go and find some more dance instructors."
He grinned. "Are you gonna start a new school?"
She shook her head and turned around to beam at him, kind of literally. "Light!" he yelled. She turned it off.
"Sorry! Yeah, no. I'm not starting a school. I'm gonna learn some new kinds of dance!"
He raised an eyebrow while standing to walk to the door. "Why's that?"
She giggled excitedly, clapping her hands together. "To learn to fight better."
He stared. "That makes exactly zero sense."
"That's fine. I know. But you'll see next time. I gotta go, so let me walk you out." She offered her elbow, and he had to blush.
"What are you-"
She rolled her eyes. "Just take my arm, fancy-pants. I am not above traditional masculine chivalry."
He sputtered but accepted the escort. "Fancy-pants?!"
She smiled with her eyes. "You big fancy Asgardians with your silk capes and magic powers. Yes, you're a fancy-pants."
Havardr's huff felt more like a sigh, but she was kind of right. Their capes really were nice. After she'd locked the door behind them and hefted her backpack over her shoulders more comfortably, she said goodbye to the others and told them she had a new temporary goal and ran off into the hallway, rushing for the elevator.
Ahmed gave him a confused glance. "What's her deal?"
He sighed. "She said something about learning a new dance form to help with her fighting? I didn't get it, but I didn't bother to ask more."
"Fair enough."
Eddie huffed. "Guess the party's over. I'm gonna head back to my apartment. You guys meet me at the Tower if you need anything. I'm not sure what the kid has in mind for tonight, but I'm only showing up there for the sake of the mission. Venom and I already agreed. We're not doing any rounds without her."
Lien and Kuro smirked, raising eyebrows at the same time. "And what's the reason for that?" Lien asked.
"Because if we get spotted on our own, people will assume we're out to do cannibalism again, and we'd like to avoid it. If she's around, people will have more trust in us. Innocence by association," he muttered under his breath.
Kuro nodded. "Good call. We better split. Too many of us in one place, constant meetings, not a good idea."
And with that, they each went off on their own.
Sanjeevani squealed excitedly, clapping her hands together and bouncing on the balls of her feet as she waited in the lobby. The ballet instructor had agreed to meet her for a preliminary lesson, but the older woman didn't want to interrupt any of the day's classes just for a prospective student. And Sanjeevani was slowly getting tired, so she sat down in one of the comfy couches and tapped her feet, eyes scanning over the simple but elegant room.
Doused in ivory and peach, the room looked impossibly calm. With the white countertops and dark cinnamon leather chairs, the lobby emanated simple grace and organization. Sanjeevani could appreciate the cleanliness of the room. Clean space, clean mind.
The ballet teacher finally walked out of a hallway adjacent to the beautiful waiting room. As severe as her craft, her hair was dragged back into a painfully tight bun. The woman strolled into the space almost floating over the ground. She stopped right in front of Sanjeevani and stared down at her, seeming to judge the young woman on whether or not she's worth teaching.
"Stand."
The young woman stood.
"Set your things down. Arms out."
She placed her backpack on her chair and held her arms out.
"Turn around."
She turned around in place.
"What kinds of dance do you know?"
Sanjeevani nodded and stood at attention. "Kuchipudi, Bharatanatyam, and Kathakali, madame."
The dance teacher raised an almost impressed eyebrow. "You know all three?"
She nodded. "Yes, ma'am."
"Are you an expert in all three, or do you know only a little?"
"Expert, madame. I've been teaching two of them to students for the past month: Kuchipudi and Bharatanatyam."
The woman's amused expression morphed into something more frustrated. "Is this a formal dance school, or are you teaching under the table?"
Sanjeevani froze. Was that a normal thing to ask dance teachers? Of course, she had registered with her school after a week of teaching so she had enough money to pay all the fees, but the school was registered within that second week. "Yes, ma'am. It is a formal dance school. Durgālaya Dance Academy. I, unfortunately, don't have a website yet, but I have my registration papers at home."
The woman nodded quietly, lips pursed. "I understand the struggles us women endure when first arriving in this town. I know the things I have done to make money in this city are not considered appropriate or acceptable by the greater ballet community. I was once an immigrant too, child. In the words of the younger generations, I am not a snitch." She turned around and motioned for Sanjeevani to follow with two curling fingers. "Come with me."
Sanjeevani grinned a little. Okay, this lady was kind of cool. Even if she seemed a bit severe, she knew enough about younger people to keep up with some of the lingo. And she wasn't one of those bitches that tattle on poor people just trying to make a living with the skills they have, even if it's outside of the law.
After heaving her bag over her shoulders, the young teacher hurried after the woman. She walked in pace with her and gazed up at her cautiously. "Ma'am, may I ask what you did to make money when you first came here?"
The ballet instructor, Madame Coullier, sighed while opening the door to the studio she wanted to use for this preliminary lesson. "I was a prostitute."
Sanjeevani choked. She did not expect that answer. "Really?"
Madame Coullier gave her a raised eyebrow and pursed lips. "Do I seem the type to joke about such serious matters, child?"
"N-No, ma'am. I just…I wasn't expecting that."
"Not many people do."
Sanjeevani wasn't the type of person to pry, but she really wanted to know more. "Were you scared?"
She snorted. "Why wouldn't I be?"
Sanjeevani paused. "Did any of your customers ever hurt you? Do things to you without your consent?"
"Yes." Madame Coullier seemed to shrink in on herself a bit, and Sanjeevani rested a hand on her arm. The woman raised her eyebrows at the younger teacher. "You know of this suffering?"
Sanjeevani shook her head. "I don't need to have that experience to understand that you were hurting and needed help, ma'am. I just understand compassion. I'm not very smart or clever or strong, but I am nice. That's pretty much all I have going for me."
"Hm…I suppose you are right." The two stood in silence for a few moments, and Madame Coullier narrowed her eyes. "Why are you trying to learn ballet? You clearly have talent of your own if you have your own school. And you certainly have enough knowledge and intelligence to run a dance academy without any help while teaching two different styles of Indian classical dance."
The young woman retorted, "Well, how do you know so much about Indian classical dance if you're a former sex worker who now teaches ballet and dances professionally? As far as I know, everything you said about me applies to you, except for the two styles of dance part." Madame Coullier smirked.
"So there's some fire in you. Very well. Sit down. I suppose I could use the break before dancing more. I'll tell you a little story. But we are still going to stretch. Do as I do." Sanjeevani dropped her backpack next to the door and sat down on the hard wooden floor with the instructor, stretching in the same way the older woman did.
Sanjeevani stared really hard at Madame Coullier, expectantly watching her to kind of provoke the woman to answer her questions.
Madame sighed. "Dance is connected. The way we have to focus on the rhythm, the music, and our bodies is very difficult. All dance is complex, and all dance is beautiful in one way or another." Sanjeevani nodded slowly. She understood everything the woman had said so far, so the ballerina continued. "As a professional dancer, I've had the opportunity to visit other countries and learn about other cultures in person rather than from a book or online. And I've learned to think of dance outside of the traditional French way of thought about what dance is."
"So you're a woke ballerina?" Shit, Sanjeevani hadn't meant to interrupt! Shit shit shit!
Madame Coullier snorted, rolling her eyes. "Yes, child. I am a woke ballerina. So when I had a chance to visit India for a brief vacation with a fellow ballet dancer, I took the opportunity. That dancer was Indian, by the way. She invited me to join, and I learned much about Indian dance forms. It was fascinating to observe the way classical Indian dancers move within their own styles. I loved it. I've had very few chances to observe the dance culture in India, but I've spent time researching and watching in order to improve my own teaching of ballet."
"That's really cool. If you ever want, I can always spend some time teaching you about the three I know. That being said, I'm usually unbelievably busy, so maybe it's easier to teach you over video chat or something."
Madame Coullier gave a small smile. "I would be honored to learn about your culture. But really. Why do you want to learn ballet when you know those three Indian dance forms?"
What lie could she tell? Sanjeevani wanted to tell the truth, but it would be too dangerous. "I've heard learning ballet can make people stronger and more flexible. You clearly know a bit about the dance forms I know. If I want to keep teaching, I need to keep my feet strong and my body flexible. And I'm pretty clumsy, so hopefully I can get a better sense of balance and learn how to fall so I don't hurt myself."
"Mm." Madame Coullier nodded. "Good reasons."
It was exhausting to try and figure out the right lies to tell people about why she was doing different things. Man, she should have just come in here and asked for help as the White Witch. Maybe that way, the woman wouldn't ask as many questions, and Sanjeevani wouldn't have to come up with so many lies.
"Now. I hope you've stretched enough. We're going to go through a few exercises. If you do well, we can decide when you want to continue lessons," Madame Coullier decided. Sanjeevani nodded. It was nice to not have to plan everything herself for once.
"Are you ready?"
Sanjeevani snorted. "I hope so." The older woman laughed genuinely for the first time since they met, and the lesson began.
"Fuck ballet," Sanjeevani groaned while eating dinner with her friend-family. Her framily.
Helen had laughed at her. How cruel.
"I can't walk, Helen! My legs are broken!"
Ahmed snorted into his soup. "Bullshit, healer. Just say they're sore because you usually don't have to be this flexible."
Sanjeevani glared at him. He laughed harder. "You guys are bullies."
"Yes, and we love you, so shut up and eat your pasta."
"Asshole."
Ahmed nodded. "Mmhm." He then paused before shooting a shit-eating grin her way. "So. I was walking around, just making sure everyone was safe and comfortable last night." Sanjeevani narrowed her eyes. What the hell did that have to do with anything? "And to my surprise, I heard your, ehm, friend's voice coming from your room. It was maybe past two or so. Do you have anything to tell us, Miss Rao?"
She glowered at him with everything she had. "Fuck you." Why the fuck was he choosing now to mock her?
He smirked wider. "Ah, so I was right. Well, do we have any happy announcements to expect from you?"
"Another word out of you, and you'll get to taste my pasta right from the plate, my dude."
He took a hissing inhale, laughing afterwards. "Yeah right. I dare you to try it."
Everyone else was squinting real hard at her. "What are you all looking at?"
Sonia huffed. "So how long have you been with this guy?"
Sanjeevani flushed bright red. "Oh my god…"
Timothy wiggled his eyebrows. "Is he attractive? Oh my god, wait-" He gaped. "IS IT THE GUY FROM LAST TIME?! THE DUDE WHO WAS HERE TODAY?!"
She slapped a hand over his mouth and groaned. "Shut uuuuup. Oh my god, you guys are the worst."
Timothy grinned under her hand. "Okay, we demand to meet him formally, and not just as an impromptu thing. Especially if he's hanging out in your room late at night. You have to invite him to hang out with us."
"First of all, no."
Olivia pinched her cheek. "You hung out with him that late. You made that choice, so live with the consequences."
"He's my friend, you assholes. Stop reading so hard into it." She locked eyes with Timothy and glared at him. She could sense the shit that would have come out of his mouth had she not covered it. "Do not even start with me, Timmy. I know what you're thinking. Do not say it."
He just smirked under her hand. She slowly removed it, figuring he was done with his bullshit. But apparently not. "I think something else was hard last night." And now she had to kill him. So she jumped up from her seat and chased him around the cafeteria, brandishing a spook in one hand and an empty plastic cup in the other while he laughed at her. The others just sipped on their drinks and tried to not die from laughing too hard.
The two idiots stopped running when Sanjeevani nearly ran over a grown man almost a full foot taller than her. "DÉSOLÉ, SIR." She yelled back after hurrying after her idiot friend. The man just sighed and strolled away, exasperated with the youths in the building, which is pretty valid, honestly.
Eventually, the two of them returned to their table to finish lunch, sighing tiredly. "That was a lot of running. How are you never tired, Sanju?"
She winked halfheartedly. "Biomanipulation. I control how my body uses its energy. Speaking of, I should try meditating again. The focus helps. Anyone want to join me?"
Sonia snickered at that. "And risk blinding ourselves in case you get too into it? No thanks."
"Fair enough," the heroine conceded with a chuckle.
Lunch was an underwhelming affair, save for the absolute embarrassment Timothy caused. Other than that, no one had much to say.
Sanjeevani started discussing what she'd learned in ballet that day, something about pushing your muscles to their boundaries and letting them rest. It reminded Helen a lot about how their mother used to explain parenting. A kid should be pushed to challenge their own boundaries, but with periods of rest for healing and relaxation. Sanjeevani spoke the same way about her body's musculature and flexibility.
"How do you feel about everything? The work, the teaching, everything else?" Olivia breached the topic as carelessly as usual. Sanjeevani only smiled.
"I finally feel like I have a solid routine down, but I'm not used to working in a group, so that'll be harder to do."
The others seemed pretty concerned, but no one wanted to push her into answering questions about such a top-secret topic. "So when do you want to join the big guys?"
Sanjeevani pursed her lips, setting down her glass of strawberry lemonade to not spill it while talking. "I genuinely don't know. I feel like something big has to happen before I join them. I have to change in a certain way, but I don't know how. I think that change might not come very soon, so I need to be patient." Ahmed gave her a cautious stare. This was definitely something to do with Havardr. Maybe something about Dr. Strange and why Thor and Loki showed up recently. She was being more secretive and more vague than usual.
"Is there any way we can help?" he pressed. She didn't budge.
"No. This is my journey. Something has to happen, and I need to handle all of it alone. I know I sound like a stubborn ass of a movie protagonist, but I'm being serious about this." With a careful breath in and a slow breath out, she got to her feet, collecting her tray. She drained her glass and set it on top of her pile of dishes. "I'm gonna go spend some time in the temple. Find me if you need something. I'm only a few blocks away." She dropped her dishes off at the return area and walked away in silence.
Jacques frowned at the others, tapping on his plate with the edge of his fork. "Did anyone else think she was being really weird just then?"
Ahmed watched her leave and turned to the rest of the group. "Even if she is, I don't know if we could do anything about it. And even if we ask that friend of hers, he won't tell us anything. Those two keep their details airtight."
Alvin shrugged at the whole ordeal. "She's our friend, guys. If something comes up, and she needs our help, wouldn't she tell us?"
The whole group exchanged unimpressed looks, including Alvin, who realized how dumb that sounded. "No, she wouldn't."
"Should we try and ask around? See if anyone she knows is willing to help us figure out how to help her?" Elizabeth mused nervously. She didn't like prying into her friend's life, but the woman needed help, and everyone else clearly knew that she wouldn't accept it if she didn't want them to get involved.
Timothy rubbed his chin. "There's a chance she could just get more and more upset if we try and invade her privacy. It's better if we stand back and let her handle things. And when we see that there's no other choice but for us to get involved, we'll help her."
Olivia scowled. "How do we know when to step in when we don't even know what problems she's having?"
"Olivia, she's not ready to be open with us." Sonia rested a hand on the younger girl's shoulder and smiled warmly. "When she's ready, we'll go to her. We can't expect her to be open right away. She spent her whole life without true family and friends. We need to be patient and understanding."
The girl only frowned, tilting her head down. She knew she wasn't a bad friend, but it felt shitty to sit there and not do anything while her friend was suffering. Especially since the other girl spent her nights wandering the city in spandex, fighting criminals and healing strangers at her own expense. "It's still not right to not help her."
Sonia chuckled and pulled Olivia into a tight hug, rubbing her back. "Olivia, it is admirable that you want to help her so much. But she's not used to even having people who want to help her, much less getting the help she needs." That sounded way sadder than any of the others expected. "So, if we want to help her, she needs to trust that we actually want to help her of our own free will, out of love for her. Because if she doesn't believe that we want to help her, she will brush us off and ignore us and get herself hurt. That's just how she is."
The younger woman grumbled and nodded. "I guess you're right. So what can we do now?"
Timothy groaned, leaning back to lessen the pressure on his too-full stomach. "I'm done. I have no idea what to do. Preferably, I'd like to nap." Elizabeth rolled her eyes at that and wrapped an arm around his waist.
Ahmed grinned. "How would you guys like to help me design and make clothes? I've got to submit these by next month for my design school portfolio. They're required for admission, and I'd love the help."
"Are we even allowed to help?" Alvin wondered.
"Yes. So long as you don't help me with the drawing and stick to the sewing and such, it's fine."
Jacques raised an eyebrow at the man, who smiled innocently. "So how long will this take?"
A wider grin. "Two hours." Everyone groaned but hurried along after him despite the displeasure at how long they'd have to work.
"Follow the lines, my friend. That looks horrible, but your sewing skills are pretty good," Ahmed agreed. His friend Jacques had a lot of natural talent, even without formal training. Really, if he wanted, the two of them could actually open up a successful tailor shop. They'd do pretty well. Between Ahmed's artistic skills and Jacques's deft, patient hands, they could do a lot.
The other young man had grumbled but tried to follow the dotted lines the future fashion designer had drawn for his friends' convenience and ease. Seriously, where did Ahmed even find the money to buy these kinds of material? Jacques was by no means a fashion expert, but he could tell this stuff was expensive.
Sonia asked the question he didn't raise. "How can you afford this stuff? It feels so fancy," she exclaimed.
The bearded man smirked in response. "Sanjeevani's compensation. I made her a super suit. She gave me part of her income from her school to make up for me taking on the costs of the vantablack cloth."
Everyone "ohhhhhhhhhhh'ed" in unison. And then Sonia asked more questions. Such a curious soul, Ahmed mused. "When did she register it? I don't remember her ever even mentioning that whole process," she admitted.
Ahmed didn't know either, but maybe he could pull it out of his ass, and they wouldn't know? Thankfully, Alvin spoke up. How did he know and Ahmed didn't?! Weren't Ahmed and Sanjeevani best friends? Why didn't she tell him anything?! "She went straight to the mayor about it. I think he also knows about her powers. She's told a few people and kept them in these weird promises to protect her secret, I think. Like a 'if you double-cross me or tell anyone my secret, I'll reveal info about you and hurt you back' kind of a deal."
That, Ahmed did know. He knew about her time on that US Navy ship, the deals she made with the captain of the ship. The deals she made with the asylum officials upon reaching Paris from Fécamp, the different people in power she had to meet to get approval for legal residence in France.
But he couldn't understand why she would go to the mayor about it instead of just going through the regular process. That seemed way too convoluted. There was some other reason she'd gone to the top of the chain rather than the CFE. He would figure it out one way or another, but was a concern for a later time. "Why did she tell you all of this?"
Alvin shrugged, genuine innocence alight in those weirdly tired eyes of his. "No clue. But maybe she worried about stressing you out? You do worry about her a lot, even though she's shown she can take care of herself."
That…wasn't untrue. Ahmed did have a tendency to freak out every time she did anything.
Did he have good reason? Yes. The girl didn't give a shit about anything and went through with her plans no matter the risks. But did she deserve that kind of judgment? No. She was a very capable adult, as she'd already shown.
Hell, she came to France all all on her own, without any Avenger's assistance. For fuck's sake, she snuck onto a US Navy ship and didn't get arrested or shot for trespassing on government property. Loki would have helped her if she asked, but she didn't. She ran off and did everything alone. Maybe Ahmed shouldn't be so concerned about her, but the girl was burning the stick from both ends, and he feared the day she would burn out completely.
Not because of her powers. No. Because of her emotional state, which influenced her powers. And because Havardr already worried about her too, despite not having spoken to her in like three weeks. If Havardr could worry about her after weeks of silence, Ahmed, who'd been there the whole time, absolutely had a right to worry.
(That guy had zero right to be concerned about her after ditching her for so long, but those two made that choice on their own. Ahmed didn't really have any right to complain about that.)
Still, he knew he had to do something about her irresponsible nature. She jumped into fights without any concern for her safety. He trusted her heroism, not her self-preservation. Maybe he could start going on little missions and patrols with her. It would be a good time to learn how to use his powers, and he wouldn't have to worry about her running off on him to do something stupid.
Elizabeth's concerned pokes to his cheek brought him out of his own mind. "Sorry, Elizabeth. What was that?"
She smiled. "You're doing that thing again. That thing where you sit and freak out about her. Ahmed, she's a grown adult. And probably more powerful than you at the moment. You don't need to worry about her so much."
He sighed. "If I don't, who will?"
She huffed. "We will, buddy. And so will that boy she likes so much. I remember how excited she was to see him. Stop worrying for all of us. We worry about both of you, you know." …Well, then. That was news to him. Elizabeth rolled her eyes, chuckling at his dropped jaw and wide eyes. The prospective shapeshifter opened his mouth to protest, but the older woman gave him no room to speak. "Yes, she's the one out vigilante-ing late at night, we know. But you're the one toiling away in your room without speaking to anyone for days at a time. You only come out for food, and you work your fingers to the bone."
Timothy walked up to stand beside his partner and then quickly knelt down to look Ahmed in the face, hoping the younger man would see and acknowledge the concern the others had for him. "Buddy, we know you're under duress constantly. We know you haven't visited your family in almost three months. And we know you definitely haven't even called your mother in five. We're just as worried about you as you are about Sanjeevani."
That struck a nerve Ahmed didn't know he had. This was new to him. Usually, he was the one to worry about everyone else. Why were they suddenly ganging up on him like this?!
As if by the telepathy Sanjeevani and Havardr had, Alvin scooted closer and rested a hand over both of his. He almost dropped the shirt he'd been working on because of it. A soft smile rose to the Nordic youth's lips. "Ahmed, the only reason we're talking about all of this now is because, usually, all nine of us are preoccupied with Sanjeevani's safety. She kind of sticks close to us, and when we're all together with her, she becomes the focus of the room, whether or not she intends that." Ahmed flushed red. That may or may not be his fault. He didn't like being the center of attention, so he usually foisted it onto her. "But we have you to ourselves now, without her. And we want to take this moment to express our own worries about you."
Did his room usually feel this warm? Did Alvin usually run a temperature this high? Or was it just Ahmed? He didn't acknowledge either of those thoughts, letting his friends continue. "My friend, whether unknowingly or not, we all tend to keep our focus on her when she's around. And it helps that she's not here now because if she hears about your behavior, she'll never let you hear the end of it. You'll be on her doctor's orders for years." That much was true. Ahmed shivered in terror at the thought. His productivity would drop to nothing, and she would care more about his health than his work.
Helen laughed. "So, that means this is a mercy for you. You can either have us worry about you, or have Sanjeevani worry about you." She paused to think and replied after a few seconds. "But to be honest, she's already constantly worrying about the rest of the city, and it doesn't help that she has to worry about the Avengers, too, so I think this is for the best."
Ahmed put his face in his hands and shook. Don't cry. Don't cry. Don't cry don't cry don't cry. Come on, Ahmed. Don't cry. This is not the time to get emotional and freak out again. These guys have never seen you have a panic attack. They would lose their minds and so would you. Stop it! He didn't listen to himself. Unsurprising. He barely listened to his parents when they told him to take up medicine or law instead of fashion. Why would he listen to himself now? And so, because of that, he began to cry. And his friends swarmed him like elephants around a fallen family member. They shared a few sobs too.
Alvin clutched onto the back of Ahmed's neck to keep the taller man's face buried in his neck. It must have been a little hard to hug around the turban, but Alvin didn't seem to care. The hug helped to at least ground the crying hero-in-the-making. But it didn't stop the tears.
Why did you let them see you like this, man?! Now they'll never let you be. They're going to put you under constant mental health watch, and Sanjeevani will find out one way or another. You will never get anything done ever again. This was a very uncommon occurrence. Actually, scratch that. This never happens. Ever. Ahmed never wanted this to happen. And yet there he was: surrounded by his friends as he sobbed and sniffled like a child, clinging to one of them as he let out his stress in a saline form. This was unfair. He didn't expect to be the center of their concerned criticisms, especially not after such a nice day of watching Sanjeevani smack around an asshole who insulted their unnaturally kind teammate.
(Yes, he had some criticisms of his own for Havardr, but the guy was loyal and nice and had such a lovely voice. And he and Sanjeevani clearly had some kind of bond that Ahmed could never have with the healer. He trusted his best friend, and his best friend trusted Havardr. So he did too. Trust by association, basically.)
"This is not how I thought I would spend my Sunday afternoon, guys," he blubbered. Alvin just laughed in his ear, intonations of scratchy velvet. That also grounded him.
"This is our job, Ahmed. Worrying about you and cuddling you when you cry…but I hope you realize, Sanjeevani will hear about this. We won't tell her until she comes back, but you're her friend too. She cares about you. She deserves to hear what you're going through. She should be there for you too." That just made him cry harder. At that point, he couldn't tell if it was fear that he'd be made to stop working or if it was because he didn't realize how much he needed to hear that his friends cared about and worried for him. His friends wrapped him up tighter and tighter as the hours ticked on.
And then came his declaration. This event only cemented his desire to be a hero. To be someone new. He didn't want to be like Sanjeevani. That was not his job. That was not his goal. He wanted to bring something new to Paris. He wanted to bring himself. He wanted to bring the change he wanted to see in his home city. "I told Sanjeevani I want to be a hero like her. The first time her handsome friend came to meet us, along with his two friends, it was for a hero meeting. To take down Genesystem Labs. They're doing bad stuff. Sanju explained that to you already."
The others slowly nodded as they pulled away. Alvin released his neck, if only to look at his face more properly. The shaggy-haired youth just frowned cautiously and nodded to ask him to continue.
Ahmed sniffled. "I at first agreed because it would be a waste to have these powers and not use them. Because I want to help people and care for them and protect those teens being hurt by GL. Because I want to be a positive force in Paris. I wanted to protect people like Sanju did." Olivia nodded. She knew this. He'd said the same thing during those twenty-five minutes earlier in the day.
He breathed in slow and deep like he'd seen Sanjeevani do during meditations. He locked eyes with each of them for a full five seconds before moving back to look at all of them together. "I know now that this can be personal. Sanjeevani seems to feel like she has to save everyone because she can. I want to be a part of it because I want to give back what you've given me."
Timothy rubbed his back, the others in the group watching with silent smiles. "Keep going, buddy. We're listening."
With cautious, watery eyes, he returned the looks and grinned. "You guys have stayed with me for years. You were there when my mother was attacked and had to go to hospital. You were there for the design competitions I won and lost. Frankly, I was shocked you guys stayed after all that drama with the police precinct a few months ago."
Elizabeth fumed, scowling at the window. "Those assholes had no right to intrude on your family's property and then try to take your uncle into custody just because they assumed he was intruding."
He laughed, nodding his head. "Indeed. And that's why we won those five-thousand euros. Thank you guys for supporting me through that. Do you see what I mean? You guys have helped me this entire time, even though I'm supposed to be the one helping you." Sonia smiled that toothpaste-commercial smile and leaned her head against his shoulder. He curled an arm about her and sighed. "I'm so thankful to have you all. But now it's time to pay you back in full."
Jacques leaned his head on the designer's other shoulder. "By putting yourself into moral peril and stressing us out just like Sanju does?"
The man sputtered in response, trying to shrug them off so he could more comfortably argue with his friend, but neither half of the couple released their grips, keeping him chained down with iron hands. "No way, you are too comfortable to let go so soon," Sonia whined. "And I'm tired from all this sewing. I've poked my fingers at least ten times so far! How in the world do you deal with all of this?!"
"By being stubborn and patient, Sonia. Maybe you need to learn some patience." And, after a few moments. "I'm sure Sanjeevani has plenty of patience." That earned him a smack to the shoulder from both occupants. He guffawed quietly as the rest rolled their eyes. "Come on, that was amazing!"
Olivia rolled her eyes harder and smiled. "That was mediocre, at best."
"You guys are rude."
She snorted. "No, you're just not that funny, bud."
With a huff and a laugh, the team returned to their work. Of course, because of the little break, they finished a bit faster than anticipated. And because they're still young and don't care about when to eat what, they all went out to get ice cream to celebrate the completion of the difficult task, or so Olivia said. Everyone else just wanted a cool dessert on such a hot day. That too, they only left after Ahmed got all his pieces organized and ready for submission. He didn't let them leave until it was all done.
Havardr sat on Kuro's couch and stared at his friend. Their staring contest began almost a half-hour ago, and they hadn't stopped. He glared harder, and Kuro mirrored him. "Stop judging me, Kuro," he grumbled.
The other man huffed. "Stop being irresponsible and putting yourself in danger, Havardr."
A knock on the door later, they were up and at the ready, arms braced and legs bent in preparation for a fight. They locked eyes again, but outside the scope of the staring contest. Kuro rose to his full height and stepped cautiously towards the door and looked through the peephole. His heart nearly stopped. "Fuck…" he breathed. Havardr frowned, hands moving into the position needed to create a portal.
Kuro nodded. That was the right move. But he didn't have time to jump forward and go through it with his friend. The people at the door knocked again, and he growled. A light went off in his head. "Go get the Witch. We need her here," he commented. Havardr nodded and ran through the portal. When he returned, it was five minutes later, with a suited-up Sanjeevani in tow. The Sorcerer Supreme was on HIS PART OF THE COUCH, sipping tea with his friend, scowling at medical inaccuracies in whatever TV show the two were watching.
KURO, WHAT THE FUCK?!
His eyes blazed, and he wanted to go on that warpath that felt so familiar to his hands. But Sanjeevani replaced his magic with her cold-painful-warm-soft hands and smiled at him, pressing her masked face to the side of his. So, instead of recalling the horrid things he'd done to the giants of Jotunheim and instead leaned back, letting her take the lead.
"Hello, Dr. Asshole Strange. Kuro." She nodded first at her friend and then at the unwelcome invader. Stephen smiled over at her, eyes calculating but docile.
"Hello, White Witch. How are you?"
She smiled with her teeth. "Not that great, but I think today will get better so long as you cooperate," her sweet words warned.
He hummed in response, standing up to greet her properly with a handshake. She didn't give him that, instead socking him across the face, full-force, with her biomanipulation pushing up behind her fist. The doctor crumpled to the ground fast, and she ripped back her mask, scowling at him.
"This wasn't right, Strange. I told you to come to me. But you come and terrorize my friends. You threaten the safety of the people I care about. You've crossed lines you can't redraw. So I want a full explanation right now. You have five minutes before I let Havardr choose where to send you. And his portals cover more than just planet Earth, so know your place and talk right."
Wheezing, the former surgeon stood up, cautiously cradling his possibly broken jaw, eyebrows furrowed and eyes wide with anger. Havardr snorted. "He needs his entire face to speak, my friend. Please fix him," he asked softly. She complied, albeit with a mild smirk of pride. She deserved it, Havardr thought. First hit against an Avenger, and she put cracks in his jaw. Kind of impressive, for a human, at least. Wow, that sounded rude.
Sanjeevani grasped his chin, and with a minute-long glow of brilliant white light tinged with gold, Strange's jaw no longer looked like the Habsburg jaw, and he no longer winced from the pain. "Asshole," she scolded while sitting next to Kuro. "You okay, buddy?" came her concerned query, directed at Kuro.
After carefully setting down his tea, the young super nodded, leaning back in his chair comfortably. "I'm fine. You?"
She nodded as well. "I'm okay. Why were you two drinking tea?"
Strange opened his mouth to respond, but she glared at him into silence. Kuro responded smoothly. "He invaded my house and asked to meet Havardr. I said no. He asked if I had tea. I said yes. He asked to have some tea and to see you, I said no. And then he offered to buy me this really amazing pure Indian tea from the continent, and I said I'd make him some if he threw in some Belgian chocolate from Belgium, that fancy cheese from Switzerland, and actual German beer. Kept him moving until you both could get back here."
Sanjeevani couldn't stop laughing for four whole minutes. "Kuro, you're my hero!" she squeaked out between giggles. The young man smirked at Strange's scowling face.
Havardr rolled his eyes and sat down on the heroine's other side. "My god, that's the funniest thing I've heard all week. Man, you just made my day," she cheered with a laugh. Her arms wrapped around Kuro's shoulders, and he hummed, letting her lean against him like a little kid who's too tired to sit normally after running around too much. Which wasn't too inaccurate for this situation.
With smirking lips and narrowed eyes, the light-weaver glowered at Dr. Strange. "You got any good reason to be here, old man?"
Strange shrugged, smiling slyly at the youths. "I'd say Havardr is much older than I am, but I suppose that's not the focus of discussion here." The three young heroes stared at him, unmoving, unnerving.
"No. It's not."
He sighed. "Look, I've told you both before. The Sorcerers want you two separated. This is of cosmic importance."
Sanjeevani and Havardr locked eyes, steely and angry. Slowly and deliberately, they looked back at Strange and spoke in Unison.
"No. We were together in childhood. We were separated by fate. You will not separate us again."
Kuro shifted, slinking deeper into the couch, disturbed by the duo's sudden simultaneous speech. Even Dr. Strange sat further back, blue-green eyes narrowed at the two of them. Something about their tones, the way they talked perfectly in time with one another, it was abnormal. It was uncomfortable, and Kuro knew for sure that Strange felt just as awkward about what those two just did.
Sanjeevani stood to her full height, hands behind her back, legs spread just far apart enough to mimic a military stand-to-attention. And when she spoke, Havardr got to his feet and stood at her shoulder, glaring silently at Strange, the pure black of his magic wafting around his hands. "Dr. Stephen Strange, you have invaded private property and attempted to detain a refugee of Thanos' war on the rest of the universe. Maybe take a step back and return to New York. This is not your call, no matter what you think. So long as he is here, he's under my protection. You and your cosmic plans for humanity can fuck right off."
Kuro snickered at that. Good to hear that the sweet little healer actually has some fire in her.
Dr. Strange got up and frowned down at her elegantly, lips pursed. "Sanjeevani, if you don't let us do what we need to do, you'll have to hold off the other Sorcerers. Maybe even Loki. If you don't-"
She cut him off before he could resume his tirade. "Doc, Loki hasn't impeded any of my activities so far. And if he wants me on the Avengers team, he won't. And from what I've seen, he definitely won't hurt Havardr either. Don't start with the lies now."
He rubbed his temples and grumbled. "What can I do to convince you to separate for a little while? Not forever. Just a little while, until the other sorcerers and I can get things back on track?"
Havardr spoke then, seeing how his friend was now shaking with anger. If she kept talking, or if Strange kept provoking her, this could turn bloody, and that was not wise, considering the team's plans for Genesystem Labs and his own precarious position in France. He needed safety, and that would not come with direct fights with Avengers, magical or otherwise. "Absolutely nothing. You don't know what we've lived through, Sorcerer. We've been together since childhood, and a momentary separation nearly destroyed our safety and well-being. I know the kind of threat you think I am."
Sanjeevani reached a hand back to grip his arm, her fingernails digging into his skin through the cloth of her suit. Her entire body was tense with barely-restrained rage, and he could only smile and pat her hand. He had to keep things calm, at least for his own sake. She was going to lose it. He didn't know why, but she was, and Havardr needed to keep the peace in the room.
"But you don't know me. You don't know what I'm capable of or why I'm so intent on avoiding my family. So maybe speak to Loki about who I am before deciding with the other sorcerers to lock me up somewhere simply for existing as I do."
Strange nodded slowly, focused on how the two held hands more than on Havardr himself. And when he actually met the technically-older man's eyes, he saw a mere glimpse of what Sanjeevani explained to him. Light and love, something homely and warm took over the youth's eyes as he gazed upon his two dark-haired companions. "Can I speak with you alone, Havardr?"
With blazing eyes, Sanjeevani bared her teeth, nose scrunching up from the movement of her lips. Oh, this was going to be a great fight, Kuro thought. He so badly wanted to see her whoop the Sorcerer Supreme's ass. But clearly, Havardr was trying to avoid that.
It didn't take a genius to see how much Strange riled up the dancer. The girl was wound-the-fuck-up. She would burst if given the opportunity, which is probably why Havardr was trying so hard to keep her back. And Kuro knew exactly how well-versed the Asgardian was in battle tactics and politics in general. He knew Havardr wanted to avoid the bloodshed.
So, before their healer could throw a punch, Kuro grabbed her around the shoulders and led her to Havardr's bedroom as a means of distraction. "Come on, sunshine. Let me show you all the cool stuff your buddy's got stored in his room. He has all these cool-ass weapons from when he was a guard. Don't touch 'em, though," he warned in a faux-excited tone. Sanjeevani didn't seem pleased by the intervention, but she let him pull her away anyways.
Frankly, her friend had a really weird room. At least, that's how she felt. Maybe Havardr was just trying to get back to how it felt to live in Asgard before it got destroyed. It had a lot of the traditionally royal colors. Red, gold, green, purple. Super luxurious with the elaborate golden armor and hyper-advanced uru weaponry, but super drab and basic with the clothing (which consisted mostly of black hoodies and old gray T-shirts and really worn black jeans). The bed was pretty empty too: a steel frame seemed to bend under the weight of a pretty small-looking twin mattress, which had nothing on it except a navy blue fitted sheet, a black and white comforter, and two white pillows without covers.
And equally sad as the wardrobe available to Havardr, the only furniture in the room was an empty faux-leather couch, the steel bed frame, a crumbling dark wooden bedside table, and a fairly large wooden dresser for the clothing, which had drawers half-open, revealing the clothes thrown in haphazardly and unfolded.
The only nice object in the room was this beautifully carved weapon display that held every weapon Havardr had ever used. It covered an entire wall, a massive plate of almost-golden wood with hooks to hold spears and swords horizontally and long leather straps to hold up shields of at least three different sizes. But grooves lined different areas of the display, as if the whole thing could fold down into a smaller, more compact container of sorts. But she didn't heed Kuro's previous warning to not touch the weapons. Her curiosity overpowered her reason. So she moved forward towards the display and reached a hand out, placing it on one of the spears. Kuro yanked her hand back and glared.
"What did I just tell you?!"
She yanked her hand back. "You pulled me away from the person I vowed to protect. Don't tell me what to do, man." And she returned her hand to the spear, marveling at the intricate carvings in the metal, swirls and smooth waves like what you'd see in the art of an ocean-based human civilization. Even the blade had been embellished with similar carvings, but they were more flowery. More resemblant of the first plants regrowing at the start of spring.
An ivory hand eclipsed her own, and she nearly jumped out of her skin. Her head whipped around to find the offender and instead found Havardr, gazing wordlessly at the objects he'd used to inflict pain on Asgard's enemies. Wait…that wasn't one of her thoughts. Sanjeevani frowned at him, and he smiled back at her, weakly, sadly, guiltily. What? He had no reason to be guilty. She was the one touching his property without his permission. Havardr shook his head, leaning down to press his lips into her hair. She found that she didn't mind the contact. Her head turned again, refocusing on the Asgardian weapons. It was odd, though. She hadn't even heard him enter the room. For a guy of his body type and height, his footfalls should have been audible, but he moved like a deer, treading under the radar of normal human senses.
"He left."
She raised her eyebrows. "What did you say to him?"
Havardr chuckled, those baritones rumbling deep in his throat. "I told him what he should have known about me before trying to separate us. And I think he got scared."
"Hm."
He still hadn't moved his hand, but she didn't mind that either. Not that much, anyway. Havardr pressed a little closer, resting his chin on her shoulder. Damn, that hurt. His chin was so sharp, and for no reason. "Do you like these?"
"I don't know. I think they're cool. But liking or disliking them isn't really part of it."
He laughed again, more like bells than thunder. "Fair enough." He curled his fingers around her hand, clasping her palm gingerly.
She tilted her head down and looked back up at him over her shoulder. "Were you a colonizer, Havardr?"
That made him pause, hesitant and uncomfortable. But he spoke honestly. "I won't say I wasn't. But it was more complicated than that."
Sanjeevani sighed, leaning her head back against his shoulder. "Was it really that complicated?"
His response made her shiver, made her wish for the warmth of her bed. "I was a guard for the Royal Family. I'd trained under Prince Loki, and many thought me a capable soldier and sorcerer. I didn't have the talent or strength of the Princes or their mother, but I had a lot of respect from people." Sanjeevani didn't have trouble imagining that. Havardr had the kind of air about him that made everyone love him. She was only a little jealous, most of the time.
"I guarded the Royal Family specifically. And when we were called for war, I joined in. I did whatever was asked of me, without question, without objection. I didn't have the right. Soldiers working for the city had more freedom to choose their duty than I did, being closer to the King and his own. So when I was called to ravage other lands, I did so without question. When I saw one of my fellow guards cut out the life of a young rebel in the lands we roamed, he nodded at me, and I stayed silent."
His hand felt very very cold now. She knew this already. She'd seen it in the flashes. But she didn't want to acknowledge it. Because who would want to? Bucky Barnes had been brainwashed into murdering so many. But Havardr? He'd been a soldier under the thumb of a colonizer. So she asked the question that didn't want to come out of her mouth. "How many did you take?"
Havardr choked on his tears. "One, out of duty."
She didn't believe him.
He knew she didn't believe him.
"It was my own superior."
Sanjeevani turned around and watched him carefully. "Why?"
His eyes were wetter than she ever remembered seeing. "To get out of service. The murder of a superior is unforgivable. The King saw my actions and had me banished from the palace and the city."
She paused. "So it was a selfish murder." That wasn't a question.
Havardr nodded. "It was a selfish murder."
"Wait, how did you avoid killing anyone else in the line of duty? That doesn't sound possible?"
He smiled dimly. "I learned from Prince Loki himself, Sanjeevani. He's the greatest sorcerer in the universe. He's an illusion expert and taught me well."
Sanjeevani wanted to laugh. "You made illusions of dead people? That's kind of fucked up, but…"
Havardr nodded. "I avoided killing innocents, but I still killed."
And now she had a question. Neither of them had noticed Kuro slipping out of the room, hood up and hands shoved into his hoodie's pockets. "Isn't killing one better than killing many?"
"Lesser of the two evils. Both are bad. One is excessively bad, one is just bad."
That made sense, "But if the killing of one was to avoid killing others, isn't that better than like, killing a bunch of other people?"
A sigh. "Sanjeevani, all life should be saved, if it can be saved. I have the blood of one on my hands, and that is too much for me. I never wanted to kill. Ever. Humans die so easily. Everyone else in the universe isn't so fragile." He turned her around and looked her in the face, both war-worn hands grasping her shoulders. She kept her eyes on him. Good, he had her attention. "Remember this. The best way to prevent death, the best way to prevent suffering, the best way to prevent crime, is to take people away from that which is hurting them. People who aren't in pain tend not to hurt other people."
She nodded. That was a sound argument. "Okay." And now her brain was hurting. This was too much. This was why she didn't want to hear about his past from him. She knew exactly how Asgard treated everyone else, even other Asgardians. "Can you come home with me? You and Kuro both?" She wanted to keep them out of the hands of the rest of the world. Kuro was good, even if she didn't know him well. And Havardr was her whole heart. She wouldn't let Strange get to him again.
Havardr smiled, the light returning to his eyes. He leaned down and pressed his lips into her hair again, and she melted against his shoulder. She had to hand it to him, Havardr gave great hugs. 0He let out a chuckle and a hum. "I'll ask him."