Chapter Forty-Three: Family Matter
To look at Jane Foster, it would appear that she was having a nightmare. A pretty bad one, too. She was curled up in the fetal position, arms hooked around her thighs. Her face was distorted-near unrecognizable-and her lips twitched to no conceivable rhythm. Her head rested unknowingly on the head of a mop. Even though her body appeared to be in great discomfort, what was going on in her head was not at all unpleasant.
In her dream, she was much older. Still beautiful, still strong. She resided in a house she'd bought with her own money and paid off with ease. Her summer-toned walls were covered with plaques and certificates, her bookshelves invaded by trophies recognizing her achievements in various fields of science. She explored her home though none of it felt new to her. As she passed through the doorway leading into her bedroom, Thor was standing there in a suit that fit him perfectly. He was adjusting his tie. Jane chuckled-he could never seem to get that right.
Though outwardly her body seemed to know that sleeping and dreaming in this place was inappropriate, her mind clung to the fantasy she was living. She could have slept there, on the mop head, forever. So when Loki's enchantment lifted from her, she didn't wake up.
One floor below, Darcy had mellowed considerably. After pouting for some time and cursing the ground the God of Mischief walked on, she'd eventually accepted her fate. She sat cross-legged on the sink's messy counter. She'd had to push all her hair products and makeup aside to do so. Her arms were rigid with her back against the long mirror. She stared at the opposite wall and turned the faucet on and off to the tune of the song stuck in her head.
She grew tired of this remarkably quickly and hopped back to the floor. Her stomach growled. "I know, right?" she agreed with her own body part and grimaced. She couldn't remember the last time she ate. Not because it was so long ago, but for she was fairly absentminded. She twirled and hummed and tapped her feet and shrugged her shoulders. In that order and in every other order possible. It didn't take long for cabin fever to overtake her. "What exactly am I waiting for?" She wondered suddenly. "Is he even going to come back for me?" She started to panic. "Am I going to just, like, die in here? In a bathroom? Like Elvis but not famous?" She pleaded with her own reflection in the mirror.
Had Darcy been more aware of her surroundings from the start, she would have noticed that when she was invisible to the Avengers, she was also invisible to herself. She hadn't even thought about it. If she had, she would have been able to connect the dots and realize that since she could see her reflection, she could also open the door.
Elsewhere
Steve felt gradually comfortable enough to open his eyes. To be safe he started with the right, then the left. He slid his hands along the perky blades of grass and focussed his breathing. Nothing was spinning now. The grass was as as tall as it should have been (and always was). He pushed himself up, still wary of any unsteadiness, and saw that Thor was gone completely. He pointed to where the body had been and shot the group beyond the yard an inquisitive look.
Before he could vocalize his question, Tony answered it. "Strangest thing," he mused, "he stood up, chucked his hammer through the house and ran inside after it."
"Through the-?" Steve began before he caught sight of the series of holes Mjolnir had made. "Why would he-!"
"He seemed a bit...I dunno, groggy, maybe? Might not be the right word." Bruce offered his vague interpretation. "He was walking very strangely. Urgently...but it still took him a heavy moment to actually get inside."
"Wait, isn't that girl in there too?" Darla whispered, almost to herself.
"She could be hurt," Bruce observed, "Thor must not have known what he was doing."
"Why do you say that?" Tony asked, implying that he disagreed.
"He would never have done that if it meant an innocent person could be hurt. At least I don't think so."
"Well, I think he likes Jane a helluva lot more than he likes Eve," Tony quipped.
"Without a doubt. But still…" Bruce struggled to find another way to express his viewpoint.
"You could be right," Steve agreed, "that spell we stepped into disoriented us. I don't know how he fought past it to stand let alone throw a weapon."
"Maybe it just made you really, really bad at standing," Tony nodded seriously along with his joking tone.
"You seem fine now," Fury noted, "did it pass?"
"I feel completely fine. Concerned, but fine. Do you think it was a temporary effect? Maybe it disables you for a few minutes but doesn't last?"
"Come across the line and then go back," Tony suggested, trying not to snicker and reveal he really just wanted to watch him fall again.
Sensing his sarcasm, Steve accepted the offer without a moment's thought. He strolled toward the group and felt nothing. Once he returned to the lawn, there was still nothing. "Maybe it's because I've already done it once. Why don't you give it a shot?" He challenged.
For a split second, Tony appeared to square his shoulders as though ready to accept the dare. But it was so quick it could have been an illusion. "Call me crazy," he said, "but I refuse to look ridiculous."
Steve accepted this with a shrug and turned his gaze to Bruce. "Oh," Bruce spoke nervously-and a little too loudly, "I can't." Steve furrowed his brow, confused. "I would try it," Bruce's nerves somehow increased, "I mean, I can't afford to lose control, it would be bad. That kind of goes without saying. I mean-"
Tony pat him on the back, knocking him forward a bit and shutting him up. "Jesus, you ramble more than Minnie Mouse over here!" Darla wanted to defend herself but when he mouth opened all that came out was, mortifyingly, a squeak. Tony bit his tongue. Too easy. He squeezed Bruce's shoulder. "Calm down, there, slugger. No one was asking you to do anything."
"I think we'd rather risk Stark looking ridiculous than you losing your cool, Banner," Steve pointed out. He thought to ask Fury, but he was on his phone. Instead, he looked back at the house and listened. He approached the hole in the wall and tried to peer through, but the dust had yet to settle.
Tony continued to tease Bruce for assuming he was being pressured to step up to the plate. He turned to Steve to repeat a particularly funny line and was left speechless instead. He tapped Bruce's arm rapidly.
"Quit it," Bruce whined. Then he saw it too.
Steve swirled back around casually, contemplating going in the house. When he saw Darla on the lawn, he nearly jumped out of his skin. "Are you insane?!" He barked impulsively. Darla took a slow step back and bowed her head like a dog being scolded. "With the effect that spell had on me and a demigod, why would you think that-" he went on in such a fashion for a while.
Tony wasn't listening. He cocked his head curiously and glanced instead at Fury. He had looked up from his phone and was eyeing the thin redhead proudly. Worst of it all-he was smiling.
In the house, Eve's adrenaline rush was wearing off and the pain was getting worse. If her eyes hadn't already been watering, the dust from her shattered walls would have done the trick. She was concerned about Loki's state but couldn't find the strength to move. Not even to wipe her tears. Not even the persistent drop that hung at the tip of her nose and wouldn't leave. She felt skin touch her upper arm and laughed happily. It was all she could think to do in her relief. "Loki," she breathed, her voice near nonexistent.
"No," was the man's response. She realized now that the hand on her was thick with rough skin, the opposite of her lover's. Her heart sank. To the bottom of the ocean.
"Is he-"
"Don't speak," Thor commanded without anger. "Save your strength." He must have known what she was going to ask. Either he didn't care or he didn't know. "Are you bleeding?"
"I-"
"Don't speak," he reiterated. She shook her head weakly, but she honestly wasn't sure. The uncertainty must have shown in her expression, because Thor began checking her for bumps and bruises. "You seem okay for now," he weighed in thoughtfully. at least the wounds she had couldn't compare to the ones he'd seen in battle. "He saved you?" Thor wondered. He almost wasn't asking, but he didn't sound positive it was fact.
Eve opened her mouth, but Thor silenced her with glaring eyes. "He didn't just leave you…" he explored the idea out loud. "He made sure you were safe…" The work she'd done evacuating tears by blinking turned out to be in vain as more welled up in the corners. If Loki was dead because he'd saved her… "I'm sorry you were hurt." He was truly remorseful, thinking the tears were due to the injuries. "I was not in my right mind."
Cautious footsteps made their way into the home, Thor angled his ear toward the sound. Eve felt his hand leave her body and the breeze his cape generated forced her to remember she was topless. Her bra clung unused to her right forearm. She winced in brief embarrassment, though Thor hadn't given any implication it made a difference to him.
Steve's voice carried through the hall. "Is everything alright in there?"
Thor didn't answer this. Instead he boomed, "Stay outside. Tell the others."
"Is he still here?"
"Yes," Thor responded after a pause.
"Great! We have to-" Steve was eager.
Thor cut him off. "Stay outside," he instructed very clearly.
"Thor, we can't just-!"
Within seconds, Thor had shoved his teammate out the front door. "This is a family matter," he stated before slamming it shut.
A/N:
Well this story has reached 100 reviews! 100 exactly, actually, which is neat. Everyone's encouragement has really motivated me. I never anticipated having so many people show an interest in this and since it's my first story I feel very proud. Thank you all so so much for your kind words!
