So for returning readers (long time no see!), chapters three and four were combined, thus making this chapter completely new. Enjoy!
four. spiderling
Gaïa began to take frequent trips through the city — usually when Stephen was busy doing wizarding things and she found herself bored. She knew she would have to learn the city, and she was really hoping exploring would lead to bigger revelations in terms to her visions. She needed answers. She wanted to make her father proud — make Thor proud. Prove her mother's faith in her was not unfounded.
Stephen never had much money to give, but he always gave Gaïa a ten or twenty when he saw that she was going for a walk. It had been a few weeks since she had met with Tony Stark, and she always ensured the phone he had given her was charged and with her in case he called. She had always been the person to never break a promise — she could be loyal to a fault, it seemed.
Gaïa took time inspecting shops and eateries, stopping occasionally to buy something if it looked good (mostly food, the only clothing she bought was a pretty white dress that came to her knees). Since getting the SSN, Stephen had been able to enroll her in the next semester at Midtown High as Gaïa Odden, and she was grateful. Stephen took what he could and bought her a few normal teen clothes, since walking around in white dresses every day was not going to be taken lightly by the kids at school. And Stephen didn't want her to have a bad experience.
It was around dinner time when Gaïa decided to head back, even after enjoying the summer sun in Central Park and reading until the sun set. She was good at remembering her way back to the Sanctum, and Stephen had warned her that flying around was probably not going to be the safest bet, unless she was in trouble. Despite enjoying the warmth of the summer, the cool night was refreshing — but the chill worked its way up her arms and legs (as she was wearing a jean skirt and a flowy yellow tee-shirt to adjust to what would be new attire).
Gaïa had her head turned to the sky, gazing up at the few stars she could see. The city, she had come to realize, was not the best place if one wanted to stargaze. Despite this, she still usually had her head turned upwards. Her sight faded as all her senses became consumed by a vision — of red magic, an airport and Tony's favor; of explosions, a giant man in an odd suit of armor and a reference she did not understand.
It suddenly felt like she got hit by a Bilgesnipe, her eyesight fading from things not yet come to pass to the concrete beneath her hands, inches from her face. She blinked several times, slowly coming back to her senses — a honking behind her to her quick breaths and finally to the man speaking beside her.
Gaïa's eyes fluttered over to the man, who was wearing a fabric red mask and weird goggles, along with a blue undershirt with a red sleeveless sweatshirt pulled over top. He helped her to her feet.
"Miss? Ma'am, are you okay? Can you hear me?" His voice sounded familiar, but not in a way that she understood yet.
She hummed, feeling her head and noticing the scratches on her hands. "Hmm? Oh, I'm fine."
"You really should pay attention to the pedestrian signs—"
Oh. . .Stephen warned me about those. . .I forgot how different traffic is here on Midgard. Gaïa thought, frowning, her cheeks heating up in embarrassment. "I'm so sorry, I seem to forget myself. Um. . ."
The man was looking at her oddly, but she couldn't tell from behind his mask. She smiled politely at him, wondering briefly why he was dressed up like he was, but thinking it might be rude to ask. Maybe it was "Dress Up Like A Hero Day" and she had just understandably not known; Midgardian's did have a few weird things that they celebrated, how was she to know?
She brushed some of the dirt and gravel from her skirt, "Thank you...?"
"Uh. . .Spider-Man!"
Gaïa blinked, nodding sharply, moderately confused. "Right. . .you have a lovely rest of your evening, Spider-Man."
The cellphone Tony had given her rang loudly, echoing off the walls in the library in the Sanctum. Gaïa was quick to answer it.
"Hey, kid,"
"Mr. Stark! Good mor—"
"I'm looking to cash in on that favor..."
That was how Gaïa ended up on the tarmac of JFK airport heading towards Tony's private jet. She had left a brief message to Stephen letting him know she was not sure when she would be home, but she had to help out Tony. Tony explained briefly on the phone what the favor entailed, but she was happy to help.
As she entered the jet, she caught sight of Happy, greeting him kindly. The only other face was unfamiliar, his brown eyes set wide staring at her. She glanced back at Happy before taking a seat.
"Gaïa, Peter. Peter, Gaïa." Happy introduced vaguely, glancing back at his phone.
"Gaïa? Like the Greek Mother-Earth?"
Gaïa's eyebrows furrowed, "No, Gaïa like the Asgardian Goddess of Light and Fertility."
Peter blinked. "Oh."
She smiled politely at him, eyes flickering to the window.
"Wait, Asgardian? Do you know Thor?!"
Her eyes met his. "He is my brother."
"Oh."
Now Peter understood who this other "guest" was that Tony had mentioned and why she was here. She was Thor's sister. She was an Asgardian Princess. He stared dumbstruck at her for a few moments too long, which she took notice of.
"Is there something on my face?"
Peter continued to stare wide eyed, his senses buzzing before he blinked back to reality. "Wha—uh—no! No, your face is perf—fine! There's nothing on your face."
Gaïa frowned, "Are you okay, Peter?"
He swallowed, nodding. "Oh, me? Yeah! I'm perfectly cool."
She raised an eyebrow, but did not comment on it. "Are you a friend of Tony's?"
"No, I'm. . .uh interning? Yeah, I'm interning for Mr. Stark." He nodded like he was reassuring himself. "What about you?"
"I'm returning a favor." she said, studying his features. Why in Valhalla was he so nervous?
"Do you—" he swallowed. "Do you know any of the Avengers?"
Perhaps it was excitement.
"No, they were present when I visited Loki before he attacked New York, but I never met them." She told him, carefully gauging his reaction to her other brother.
It nearly slapped Peter in the face that as an Asgardian goddess, she aged very differently than him. Loki's attack to now probably seemed more like a blink to her rather than years to Peter.
Gaïa mistook the look on his face as a bad reaction to hearing Loki's name. "I do not condone my brother's actions, but I know someone was pulling strings and I have a fear about who. Whatever the case, I would like to apologize on his behalf for the destruction he and the Chitari army caused."
The word "brother" took him off guard — he knew from vague information that the news mentioned was that Loki was adopted, more-or-less. He found it fascinating she still considered him a brother.
"Oh, I don't—uh—there's no need to apologize." He momentarily thought that she apologized a lot — from when he saved her from getting hit by a truck to now, apologizing for someone else's actions.
"Do you know the other Avengers?"
"Oh, I wish! Meeting Mr. Stark was probably the coolest day of my life!"
Gaïa liked the way his face lit up.
His smile was infectious, it seemed, because Gaïa was grinning too. "It was a pretty cool day for me too, to meet a man from so many of Thor's Avengers stories."
"He probably tells the best stories!"
Gaïa laughed, "He can be a bit all over the place sometimes, but they are pretty grand."
The rest of the plane ride was smooth and quiet — with the exception of Peter filming Happy snoring and him waking up. Gaïa was unsure what to expect when they landed, so she found time to rest. Peter found time to sleep too, Happy thankful for the quiet.
Once landing, Happy drove the two to a nearby hotel to wait for further instruction, briefly exploring Berlin. In Peter's narration for whatever he was filming, he said he had no idea why he was there and Gaïa was uncertain whether or not she was to fill him in. Surely Tony had not told him for a reason?
Gaia's room was next to Peter's, joined by a locked door — Happy on the other side of Peter, and he told them both to "suit up".
Frigga had taught her daughter many things, including how to form her armor in a flash. Gaïa set her things onto the chair in the corner of her room, before entering the bathroom and staring at herself in the mirror.
A glow covered her figure in yellow and white before fading and revealing her armor. It was relatively simplistic compared to Thor's, but she usually relied on her agility when it came to fighting rather than raw brute strength.
The heaviest part was the silver metal covering most of her most vulnerable areas and leather covering less-lethal areas. A thin yellow cape came down behind her. Underneath was a tunic and pants, and her boots came up just below her knees. Her helmet was the most different than that of her siblings — intricate metal pieces rested on her face, while the rest of her "helmet" was invisible. If you looked close enough, you could see the hazy, nearly invisible energy forming around her head, in a shape similar to Thor's. Sif had once called it "rather stupid", but Loki had told her it was brilliant. One would go in for a head shot only to be struck with a burst of energy that could shatter a human arm, or blow back a stronger opponent. It took a good bit of focus and energy, which was why it did not cover the rest of her body, but it had always protected her head in training.
Gaïa stared at herself for a long moment, not particularly knowing if she could shed blood from people Thor considered allies.