Loki's family settles into the empty house on the hill after a few days of living in the Great Hall. Thor stays with them for a week, explaining them where he will be living and making sure they understand they can come for him whenever they need him, even if it is in the middle of the night.
The first night in their new home without Thor, Loki is startled awake by the sound of gusting winds. Cyd, tucked beside him, doesn't rouse, not even when Loki gently shakes him and whispers his name. Loki slips out of bed, wraps himself in a blanket, and steps out into the blustery night. He walks down the road to Valkyrie's house and taps on Thor's window. He waits. He taps a second time. Thor's light turns on and he comes to the window.
"What ails you, Brother?" he asks.
Loki, huddled in the blanket, feels almost ashamed to say he's scared of the wind, but he says it anyway, "It's the gusts, Thor. The way they rattle the windows. The way they sound rushing past the house. It's...it's reminding me. Of the Void. Alioth. I can't."
Thor nods, "Give me a moment to put on something warmer and I'll be out. Stay there. I'm not letting you walk back alone." Loki waits, leaning on the wall, the blanket clutched around his shoulders. He huddles down, hoping to press the blanket against his ears to close out the sound of the wind.
He hears Thor approach and looks over to him as Thor places his hand on Loki's back, "Come on, Loki. Let's get you home."
"I can't stop thinking about being in its wind," Loki says, helplessness in his voice, "Feeling as though we were going to die. Watching the old man build Asgard from sheer will and magic. The rush of Alioth all around us as Sylvie and I tried to save ourselves with enchantment, not knowing if I could..."
Thor wraps his arm around Loki's shoulders, "But you're not there. I understand that memories can haunt us. I will never tell you they shouldn't hurt. But I will remind you that we have a promise that we won't end up back there. We're here and this is where we will live our lives together." He walks Loki back to the house and brings him into the living room, gently insisting he settle into one of the big pillows on the floor. Thor goes to the kitchen and makes tea. Loki is still huddled in his blanket when he brings it out. Thor pulls a small table over to beside the pillow and sets the tea mugs on it. He then lowers himself beside Loki and hands him the tea. They sit together in silence, the wind gusting past the house, Loki tensing each time the windows rattle. Thor sets his tea down and carefully folds Loki in his arms. Loki doesn't resist, resting against Thor, sipping his tea.
When Loki starts to nod off, Thor slips his mug from his hands, "Let's get you back to bed. You're starting to fall asleep."
Loki nods, "Thank you, Thor." He doesn't move. Thor gives him a few more minutes until he starts to doze again, before he quietly speaks his brother's name, just loud enough to wake him, and helps him stand. He walks him to his bedroom. Loki opens the door, the soft glow of the Tesseract on the dresser spilling into the dimly lit hallway.
"It still amuses me that you use one of the most powerful artefacts in the universe as a nightlight."
"It has little other use to me," Loki says, "and it's a reminder of how far I've come."
Thor nods, "That it is." He pauses, then asks, "Do you need me to stay here tonight?"
"I don't want to deprive you of your rest, Thor."
"I didn't ask that. I asked if you needed me to stay here tonight."
Loki nods and whispers, "Yes, please."
"Never be ashamed to ask this of me, Loki. I've told you this before and I will continue to remind you. Taking care of your heart is never an inconvenience to me. But speaking of your heart...your love waits in bed and, no doubt, misses your warmth beside him."
Loki blushes and smiles, "Thank you, Thor." He quietly closes the door behind him. Thor heads back to the living room. He makes himself a nest of pillows and blankets and settles in, finishing his tea, and letting himself drift off.
Tam comes to expect that at least once a week, they will find Thor sleeping in the living room when they wake to start breakfast. As in the Void, Tam takes to starting breakfast on their own, gently waking everyone in the house when it is nearly ready, the table set when they all make their way to the dining room. When Thor is there, he is encouraged to join them, and often, he does. On those mornings, Valkyrie stops by to check in on him and is ushered to breakfast as well. Tam always makes enough to add one more person to their table.
But as they were warned, there are also nights when it isn't only Loki's memories that keep them up. Little by little, snippets of Ayshi, Iris, Tam, and Cyd's former lives start to creep first into their dreams, and then into their waking moments. Cyd's first memory is of dancing, of music, and of performing on a stage to thunderous applause. It thrills him and he knows exactly why it is that he was drawn to name himself Cyd. Dance has been a part of his life for so many years, even if it has been hiding under the surface where he couldn't quite touch it. But now, with his memories starting to return, he knows exactly how he used to move and why he simply can't stand still when there's a tune on the air.
The memories that Tam first recalls are far darker. They remember where they were imprisoned and the horror of daily life and so much death. Tam wakes up gasping, startling Iris, sleeping beside them. Tam doesn't fall back asleep, and because of this, they see the same moment come to Iris' dreams. Iris sits bolt upright in bed, tears streaming down their face as they call out a name they haven't said in years.
They turn to Tam, "Do you remember Hannah, too?"
Tam slowly nods, "Yes. Clearly. I remember how she was murdered. I saw it tonight."
Iris sobs, "Why do we have to remember this?"
Tam wraps their arms around their friend, "I don't know. But let's remember that we're together and all that death...we told ourselves we would end it and we did, without question, without backing down. It wasn't perfect, but it also wasn't nothing. The TVA can't take that power from us."
Iris takes a deep breath, "We can't let that life just fade away, can we?"
"No."
"I want to find our history in this time. I know we were caught and executed, but still... And then I want to write down what the future could have been. No one will believe it really did happen to us, but..." Iris' voice trails off.
"But we can at least share how it could have been that way," Tam says, "Even if the story never leaves New Asgard, we can write it down, a little piece, as we remember it."
"All of us," Iris says, "You, me, Ayshi, and Cyd. And since he promised he wouldn't prune us, maybe we can reshape this world so it doesn't happen again."
Tam smiles at them, "We sure as hell can try."
In the morning, they tell their idea to the rest of the family and Valkyrie promises to show them how to look up records on the internet so they can start to learn more about what happened to them in the world in which they are living.
Ayshi's first memory comes to them in the middle of the day when they are cooking with Tam. They ask for the salt, but they don't say it in a language they recognize. Tam understands the request and hands it over. They lock eyes.
"What just happened?" Tam asks.
"We used to talk to each other like that," Ayshi says. "I don't know how, but..."
Tam nods, "Well, at least we still understand each other, right?"
Ayshi laughs, "Yeah. That's true. If only I knew what language I just spoke!"
Later in the day, Ayshi tries to repeat what they said in the kitchen and can't remember what it was they said. But little by little, over the course of weeks, the words slip into their speech more frequently and Cyd, Iris, and Tam all reply in kind, each of them giddy that this language is theirs, something the four of them share. Thanks to speech-to-text on a cell phone, they eventually discover that the language they've all found they can speak is Yiddish. Cyd is the first to discover he knows German, songs coming to him before conversations, and he spends hours with Ayshi, Iris, and Tam studying and piecing together their own languages, excited to understand one another in so many different ways. The attic of their house becomes a library in multiple languages. German, Yiddish, English, and even old Norse, so close to ancient Aesir dialect that Loki can read it, grace the shelves and can be heard during their storytelling in the evenings.
It is Tam who first paints, "May this house be a haven," over their front door in English, and Ayshi who writes beneath it in Yiddish. Cyd translates it to German, and Iris calls on the power of the internet to add Hebrew. Loki adds runes. Others in New Asgard send requests- a French fisherman who came for safe harbour during a storm and never left brings the message in his own language. The Romani family who sought safety from persecution one late night in the Great Hall and found kinship with the Aesir write it down so Iris can add their words to the collage. Soon, there is no more room around the door. Valkyrie builds a signboard to mount in the garden beside the door. Before too long, it, too, is covered in their message in so many different languages.
Language isn't the only new thing to appear in the heads of the four former archivists. Tam wakes up one morning and realizes their scalp feels odd. It itches. While washing, it strikes them what is happening. Hair. They're growing hair.
They throw a towel around their body and run from the shower, shouting excitedly as they burst into the dining room, "Hair!" they yell, "I have hair!"
Ayshi gasps and runs over to touch the tiny dark bumps emerging from Tam's scalp.
Cyd shoves back the scarf he has wrapped around his head, "Oh my gosh, is that what this ridiculous itching is from?"
Iris strokes his scalp, "Feels like it is, Cyd. You're going to have light hair, though. I can barely see it. Unlike Tam's."
"What about you?" he asks, "Do you have hair coming in?"
Ayshi shakes their head, "Not me." Iris answers the same. But a few days later, Ayshi is heard giggling in the shower and comes out asking what colour their hair is going to be. Iris announces theirs the following day. Little by little, they discover one more aspect of themselves. Cyd's hair is very light. Tam is his opposite, with hair so dark it is nearly black. Iris's hair is a rich brown, and Ayshi's is a vibrant copper.
Over time, they become a part of the fabric of New Asgard. Cyd, always the walking rainbow in his brightly coloured clothes, flowing blond locks, and no regard for expectations of gender, walks into the tailor's shop one morning and simply states, "teach me everything you know." Within a week, he is sewing simple bags and in a month, he is making garments from patterns. And then he learns draping and starts refashioning anything people will give him. Midgardian clothing, Asgardian clothing, whatever he can find, he learns to sew or to recreate or to refashion. Cyd's creations, often Aesir styles in bright Midgardian textiles, begin to show up all across the town.
Iris loves music and tries any instrument they can get their hands on. Someone has a battered piano and Iris coaxes them to give it to them, as it is being used a glorified shelf. They call on friends and haul it to the Great Hall. On warm days, music drifts from the open windows and doors as Iris closes their eyes and lets their fingers trace memories onto the keys, coaxing from them complexities their hands knew long before they understood where it came from. It is through the music that they begin to remember other pieces of their life- moments on stage, the audience stunned by the music coming from the person becoming one with the piano. And this is yet again what happens, though no longer on a stage. People hear Iris playing and gather to watch, to listen, and to dance.
Ayshi, ever the tinkerer, wanders the town with Loki and alligator Loki, looking for things they can use for the house. They scavenge unwanted furniture and learn to fix and remake it. They meet the young artist who turned the station wagon into a garden, the roof and seats removed, climbing flowering vines pouring over the doors, the hatch now a sheltered sitting spot amidst the plant life. She takes teaches them everything she can about working with power tools and hand tools, and, in time, the three of them (with their alligator friend) start hosting fix-it days where they drag a work bench into the town square and invite people to bring things they need repaired or they no longer want so it can be remade. Their sculptures show up in little corners of town, tucked in alcoves, in shop windows, and wrapped around the drainpipes and it is not unusual to see Ayshi, a knitted cap shoved down over wild red curls, nimbly scaling a building to place one of their creations higher than the others can reach.
In time, the young artist, the same age as Loki, asks him if she can walk with him, alone and while they sit and watch the waves, she kisses his cheek and tells him she'd like to hold his hand. Stunned, he lets her.
Tam often sits with Valkyrie and Thor, listening to the needs of their community. When Tam hears someone is in need, they gather their family together and they find a way to help, Tam often showing up on the doorstep of someone struggling with some small (or not so small) gesture of care in their hands. And when a fire sweeps through the town, the great pump from the sea not fast enough to save every home, Tam springs into action. No one sleeps on the street that night and no one is hungry or cold in the morning, the Great Hall immediately converted to a shelter. While the entire family pulls together to take care of the dozens of people suddenly without homes, it is Tam who coordinates everything, pulling together not only what they can spare from their own home for that night, but organizing the community to rebuild lives while those of their family who are strong and either skilled or willing to learn lend their hands and their strength to rebuilding houses.
Sylvie has a more difficult time finding her place. She often stays in, quietly observing what life looks like for others, unsure of how to live her own. It takes Hunter's careful coaxing to draw her out the door. Hunter is patient and finds herself spending more and more time with Sylvie, asking her to dance in the Great Hall when Iris plays for one of the many community celebrations that spring up outside any official holiday. When Sylvie is restless, it is Hunter who takes her to the sea to find calm in the crashing waves. When Sylvie finds Hunter practising her fighting skills alone, eyes closed, envisioning an opponent where none stands, she offers to spar with her. Hunter teaches Sylvie her ways of fighting. Sylvie returns the favour and teaches Hunter hers. On occasion, they draw in Loki and the three of them fight and analyse one another's tactics. Loki loves having the chance to bring out his beloved daggers and to share what he knows, learning what the others have discovered. He knows he is a guest in the space and the sparring ring belongs primarily to Hunter and Sylvie. He never interrupts and only joins if he is invited.
One day, he hears their practise session fall silent, no more the sound of strikes of wooden staves against one another filling the hall outside the open door to the drawing room they've converted to their space. He walks by to check on them and finds Hunter softly kissing Sylvie. He smiles and silently closes the door so no one interrupts them.
Mobius initially doesn't know how he will fit into this world, being so accustomed to life in an office and only knowing life beyond it either through observation or their time in the Void. But his skills in piecing together complicated stories comes in handy when Valkyrie starts talking about disputes between people in the village she struggles to mediate. He looks at all angles, asks questions, and gathers facts to put together fair judgements. She turns to him to be the voice of resolution and Mobius happily embraces this new role, one without nearly as much paperwork as in his previous life. He often jokes with Valkyrie that he's the entire justice branch of their government.
Thor settles into life as Valkyrie's advisor easily, often reminding himself that he is no longer the prince, merely another person in the fabric of this life. It takes him a while to shed his need to always give input, even when it's not asked for. He tests Valkyrie's patience to the point where Mobius has to step in.
"I'm putting on my mediator hat now," he says, "So don't either of you throw me across a room. I know you both can. So sit down and let's walk through this one step at a time." He turns first to Thor, "So, tell me what you're thinking."
Thor does. And then Valkyrie does. In the end, Mobius talks them through how to set up boundaries and how to talk about when they feel they've been crossed in a way that doesn't involve anyone getting threatened with imminent bodily harm.
And then comes the day when Mobius excuses himself, saying he has a large package coming and he needs to wait for the delivery truck. Curious, Loki asks to accompany him. They leave Valkyrie's house and walk to the edge of town.
"Mobius? What possibly is so important that it can't be delivered as everything else is?"
"Something big, Loki. Something big. We're not going to just leave this one to whoever's at the post office today" Mobius says, his hands in his pockets, a smile on his face.
"You're not going to tell me what it is, are you?" Loki asks.
"Nah, where's the fun in that? I'll give you three guesses, but the first two don't count."
Loki pauses and looks quizzically at his friend before hurrying to catch back up, "Wait, that doesn't make any sense."
"Sure it does."
"But then I only get one guess."
Mobius laughs, "Loki, take a good long think about this one. What's one thing I'd expect you to guess I'd want now that we're on Earth and right next to a big ol' body of water?"
Loki's eyebrows shoot up in surprise, "You bought a jet ski?"
"Bingo!" Mobius says, grinning, "I bought a jet ski!"
"How?"
"Well, there's this thing called the internet," he says, playfully sarcastic, "And you can buy all sorts of things on there. And for an unreasonably high fee, they'll even bring it right to your very own Norse fishing village."
Loki shakes his head, "No, I get that. How did you buy a jet ski? It's not like we came here with riches."
"See, one of the advantages of being an analyst with the TVA is I know a lot of very specific and very minute things about different timelines. And we have a couple of TemPads."
"I don't follow," Loki says.
"Hang on, hang on, I'm not finished," Mobius gently chides him, "People bet a lot of money on sporting events. Ridiculous amounts of money. And if you place your bets just right, you can win a fair amount in a few different places and people just think you're a really lucky guy. Take a few strategic losses, make sure to keep your wins higher than what you have to let slide, and you can make a pretty decent amount of spare change that way."
"You...you bet at sports to make money for a jet ski?" Loki asks.
"Yeah. Well, not just a jet ski, but sure."
"What do you mean, 'not just a jet ski?' Are there other things coming?"
"A few, but they're all smaller. I bought that silk Cyd's been daydreaming about. The tuning forks Iris has been wanting are on their way. Really slick set of cast iron cookware for Tam. That saw Loki and Ayshi keep saying they'd give someone's arm for...yeah, I did some nice things for people," Mobius says. He looks at Loki and grins, "Even got something for you, too."
"Oh?"
"Yep."
"You're not going t tell me, are you?"
"Nope."
"Mobius," Loki says, "How are you going to keep affording to do things like this? We don't have much-"
"That's where you're wrong." Mobius says, cutting him off. "See, again, as one of the top guys investigating and pruning variants, sometimes I got to choose some really interesting cases. And one of them, he was one of the minds behind the whole idea of the stock exchange. I learned a lot talking to the guy. He just wouldn't shut up about economics and theories and all the reasons he'd revolutionize finance and make it so anybody could get rich. Turns out, guy was onto something."
Loki stares, mouth gaping, before he finds his words, "You did what?"
"Pruned a very smart economist who never stopped talking."
"And...?"
"And let's just say I've got a fair amount of change doing pretty well as investments right now. Another thing I learned in the TVA- I kinda got a long view of history. There are a few companies just getting off the ground that I know are going to do really well here over the next few years. Nobody in New Asgard's going to have much to worry about for a good long while."
"You mean the family."
"No, I mean the whole dang village, Loki. We're going to be able to take care of each other however we need to and have a little left over for creature comforts. Don't worry, I'll make sure to teach one of you guys with the long lives how to keep a watch over it before I drop."
Loki laughs, "Well...I certainly didn't expect this."
"Yeah, neither did I. Didn't expect a whole lot of what I've ended up with, but I've gotta say, I'm pretty happy here."
They reach the village post office and Loki places a hand on Mobius' shoulder, smiling at him, "And so am I. Thank you."
"For what? For offering you the chance to be the first passenger on my jet ski? Because I'm doing that, too."
"No," Loki says, "Though I'm eager to learn about this little vessel. For allowing me the chance to live this life. None of this would have happened without you."
Mobius smiles back and hugs him, "You're welcome. I'm glad I took that shot in the dark."
Before they can continue the conversation, a very large truck comes into view, kicking up dust on the gravel road into town. Mobius is practically giddy as he watches the workers unload the crate and he waves as they leave. He and Loki put the crate onto a wagon with the help of the people staffing the post office and they walk it down to a warehouse near the docks. A boy greets them and, nearly as excited as Mobius, begs for the opportunity to watch them uncrate this fabled jet ski. He stays while they pry off the wooden lid and dismantle the crate, the blue and white body of Mobius' new toy glimmering in the light streaming through the open bay doors.
He stands back with his hands on his hips, beaming, "Now isn't that a pretty little sight..."
"Are you going to take it on the water today, mister?" the boy asks.
Mobius nods, "Why yes I am. But do you know what I need to do first?"
"What?" he asks. Loki waits for the answer as well.
"I need to go get my life jacket. Safety first, my young friend." He and Loki hurry to the house on the hill, eagerly sharing their good news with Tam, Iris, Sylvie, and Hunter as they dash back out the door, two life jackets in tow. When they arrive at the dock, they are followed by not only the four people they told at the house, but the other family members, quickly summoned, and a few friends gathered along the way.
Mobius straps on his life jacket, "Now, I'm going out first, but when I get back, Loki gets the first ride as my passenger. And nobody touches the jet ski without asking first, got it?" Heads nod. Mobius breaks into a wide grin, "Great! Let's get this baby in the water!"
When he is ready to go, he starts the engine, giggles as he hears it roar to life, and takes off from the dock yelling and hollering with joy as he skips over the waves. When he finally returns for Loki, he promises not to be too much of a daredevil and they are off, Loki both thrilled and terrified as he grips Mobius around the waist, hoping he doesn't fall off into the frigid water. Back safely on shore, Loki shivers, his clothes soaked through. He passes his life vest off to the next lucky passenger and turns to head back to the house, but there is Tam with a curtain set up in one corner of the warehouse, a stack of towels, fresh clothes for the family, and a steaming urn of hot cider ready to warm everyone from the inside. It is nearing dark when Mobius finally hauls his jet ski out of the water and into the space that has been made for it in the warehouse. His suit is dripping wet and as the adrenaline wears off, he realizes just how cold he is. Tam ushers him to the changing area, gathers everyone's wet clothes and towels, and makes sure he has his own mug of cider before piling everything onto a hand cart and heading back to their house on the hill.
Loki watches the people in his family bloom and wonders just where he fits. Everyone seems to have stories from their work outside the house. Even Sylvie and Hunter find ways to take part in village life. Sylvie has discovered she loves being around the village children, embracing their bright energy in memory of her own lost innocence. When tragic things happen, such as the death of a pet, the loss of a family member, or the great fire, it is Sylvie who sits with the children and tries to bring them some measure of peace. Hunter can almost always be found with her, bringing tissues, water, food, stuffed toys, whatever it is that Sylvie requests for them. Both women ask the children for their stories and joyfully encourage them to teach them games and songs. In time, Sylvie lets herself remember the little time she had growing up in Asgard and recognizes little snatches of her childhood in the play of the young people around her. She starts to make peace with what happened to her. And then one of the little girls she has spent so much time with stops coming to see her. Heartbroken, Sylvie turns to Valkyrie for advice and learns the child has been orphaned, her father dead and her mother disappeared, presumed also dead. The little girl has no other family, her parents never having made connections with others after the deep losses of Asgard itself and during Thanos' attack. She is staying with one of the schoolteachers, but isn't happy. Hunter knows what Sylvie is thinking even before she asks and soon there is a small child living with them in the house on the hill.
Loki is uncertain around children. He doesn't feel as though he can talk to them the same way he sees Sylvie and Hunter talking to them, though he easily falls in love with their daughter and happily lets her lead him in play. He doesn't have the skills to work with Cyd, though he loves hearing about the beautiful projects his beloved has underway. He doesn't trust himself with the tools that Ayshi and Loki have mastered, and while he often assists Tam, he doesn't know if being a caregiver is something he can give himself to in the same way they can. There is too much, he thinks, that he needs to take care of in himself first. He does sometimes sing with Iris, but he feels as though his voice pales in comparison to the sounds Iris can coax from the battered piano. He struggles sometimes to understand how Mobius comes to the conclusions he does, though he sees them as equitable and just. And though Thor and Valkyrie draw him into their conversations on governance, he doesn't want to be at the head table like he once did. But despite this, there are days when he feels as though his usefulness is limited.
He walks with Tam along the shoreline a year after their arrival, hoping the waves can calm his racing thoughts.
Tam takes his hand, "So...you asked me to come with you. Did you want to talk or did you just not want to be alone? Either is fine. I just want to know if there's something I should be doing."
Loki shakes his head, "No, I need to talk. I just don't know where to start."
"Well...what's the first thing on your heart?" they ask.
"We've been here a year as of today. I remember the time of day so clearly. Right now, we were pushing a car through a doorway in time and space, praying we could find a home here. And we have. Mostly."
"Only mostly?" Tam says.
Loki sighs, "I don't know where I belong."
"With us," Tam replies, "You belong with us. I hope none of us have ever made you question that."
"No, no, you haven't," he quickly says, "This doesn't have to do with any of you. Just me."
"Explain."
Loki nods, "You all have found places you belong- roles in our community. And I...I really haven't. You have things you do to contribute to this place, to help build it up, but what do I do?"
Tam stares at him, "You really don't think you have a place in all this?" He shakes his head and they lead him to a boulder they've often sat on to watch the sea, "Loki, my dear friend..." They rest their hand on his cheek, turning his face so they can look into his eyes, "You are the key to all of us doing this, being here. Cyd wouldn't have found his place without your gentle encouragement. I couldn't do what I do if you weren't beside me every time. You've never failed to give advice that has helped me to better take care of those I need to embrace. Your youngest brother wouldn't have had the courage to say 'yes' when Althea asked him to dinner with her family if you hadn't been there to urge him forward. It was you who reminded him that a kiss isn't a contract and he could always take a step back if he needed to. And now they're inseparable. I know you've stayed up late with Sylvie, reassuring her that she does deserve this beautiful love she's found with Hunter and their child adores the stories you tell and the magic at your fingertips. And whether you realize it or not, you are Thor's strength. I watch him. He glows when he sees you happy and so much a part of our lives. He's so proud of you every moment of every day."
Loki breaks his gaze from theirs and looks out over the ocean, "I know, but...I just don't feel like I matter as much as everyone else. You all have your own niches."
Tam sighs, "Loki...how can I convince you that none of this would happen without you? None of this could have, to begin with? We are here because you survived. Because Cyd brought you supper and we came back with questions and you didn't shut the door and tell us to go away. Because you revealed to us all who we really are. And when Judith died, you understood the danger. We survived that place, we freed ourselves, and we are together because of you. What's your role here? You're the core of our family. You keep us together. And we all love you."
He smiles, "I suppose I'm a bit everywhere, aren't I?"
"Not everyone has to take centre stage, Loki. Let yourself be who you are. Don't try to force yourself to be someone you're not."
He nods and then stands, stretching, "I still can't believe it's been a year. We came here on a hope, nothing more. And now it's home."
"Because we decided it was. And we stuck together. And we're going to keep deciding it is and sticking together, no matter what comes our way," Tam says.
Loki offers them his hand, "Yes, yes we will. And I hear Iris playing on the wind. Shall we go join the party? I think they decided to gather in the Great Hall tonight, just like we did that first night we were here."
"The first night we had a shower in months," Tam says.
"Of all the things that happened that day, that's what you remember most?" Loki asks.
They shrug, "Not only, but still. After all that time? Hot water was a blessing I didn't think I'd miss as much as I did. And real food! That none of us had to hunt for or scavenge for! A warm fire. A roof that kept us dry. Pillows! It was so incredible to be warm and to have pillows to sleep on. And best of all, we were all still together."
They walk hand-in-hand back down the beach and back through the town. As they approach the Great Hall, the music grows louder and they can hear laughter from within and voices lifted in song. The hall is bursting with light and life.
Sylvie pops her head out the door and, upon seeing them, calls back to the others, "They're here!" A cheer rises from within and she runs out to meet them, arms open, "Come on! We've been hoping you'd be here soon!" She hugs them both, kissing Loki's cheek, laughing as she tugs at his arm to hasten them along. She pushes them through the door. The people assembled- their family, the friends they've grown close to- greet them with enthusiasm and clapping.
Thor's voice booms over the din, "It's 'Welcome Home Day,' Loki! We did it!"
Cyd rushes up to Loki and hugs him, others soon following. Loki laughs, overwhelmed by the love he's being shown.
From behind his shoulder, Tam whispers in his hear, "Still think you don't have a place here?"
He shakes his head and reaches back to bring them into the hug, "No, I most certainly do."
His friends draw him to the centre of the room. Iris strikes up a song and invites everyone to sing- it's not a song Loki's ever heard Iris play before, one he recognizes from Asgard, a song that always held a special place in his heart, a favourite of his mother's. Others in the room bring out instruments and Cyd begins to sing, his accent and pronounciation just a little off, but so proud that he can sing in the old language the way Loki has so often told him was one of the things he missed most dearly from his old life before his fall.
Cyd walks up to Loki and takes both of his hands, singing to him, inviting him into the music. Others have joined at the chorus, the Asgardians who grew up with the song, his family who has learned it. Loki lifts his voice staring into the eyes of his beloved, no longer unsure of his place in this life he has built with the family he found along the way.