"'So you're always honest,' I said.

'Aren't you?'

'No,' I told him. 'I'm not.'

'Well, that's good to know, I guess.'

'I'm not saying I'm a liar,' I told him.

He raised his eyebrows.

'That's not how I meant it, anyways.'

'How'd you mean it, then?'

'I just...I don't always say what I feel.'

'Why not?'

'Because the truth sometimes hurts,' I said.

'Yeah,' he said. 'So do lies, though.'"

–Sarah Dessen

Freyja kept as still as possible, fighting every instinct telling her to run from the man with the all-too familiar eyes. Fear still sparked through her as she remembered rough hands holding her wrists above her head and the taste of blood on her lips. This is not the same man, she thought to herself, he simply has similar eyes. But they weren't simply similar, they were uncannily the same. The same as the eyes that she had thought beautiful before the man who had possessed them revealed himself as a monster. But this was not the same man. The similarities ended with their eyes.

"Freyja, this is Captain Steve Rogers," Bruce motioned towards the blonde man in a tee shirt and jeans.

He took her hand carefully, unlike the others had, "Pleased to meet you, Freyja."

She smiled, though the gesture was forced as she fought back her panic, "The pleasure is mine, Captain."

"Natasha Romanoff," Bruce continued as the red-haired woman came gliding forward, extending her hand. "And Clint Barton."

She shook the hand of the other man, Clint Barton, last, her eyes cast on his lips to avoid his gaze, "It is a pleasure to meet you formally. I believe you shot me out of the air?"

He smiled, which she stiffly returned, "Sorry. I was following orders."

She nodded, "I would hope so, I was beginning to think there was no such thing as manners on this planet."

Tony, Bruce, and Steve laughed, though both Natasha and Clint seemed slightly peeved. They dragged another table over and sat down. Steve took the seat next to her, at the head of the table, giving her a chance to speak with him.

"Captain," she started, putting down her wrap, "if you don't mind my prying, you are not from here, are you?"

He shook his head, "Not exactly. And you can call me Steve."

"Where are you from, if I may be so bold?"

"With all due respect, ma'am, you wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"And if I told you I came from a similar place as Thor?"

He raised his eyebrows, "You came from Asgard?"

"I was born in Vanaheim," she clarified, "but I spent most of my adolescence in Asgard."

"So do you have a title?" Clint asked, causing Freyja to stifle a flinch.

She turned towards him, her gaze directed on his lips rather than his eyes, and she put all her effort into keeping her voice steady and amiable, "A few. I am first and foremost the Princess of Vanaheim, but I have been called many names. The last time I journeyed here, your people named me the goddess of love, magic, and beauty. I believe a group of have called me the Teacher of Mystiques, as well. But that was a minority race which was quickly integrated into the Greeks. They called me the goddess of wisdom then."

"You were Athena?" Bruce asked.

She nodded, "It was one of my many names upon Midgard."

"But Athena was the goddess of battle strategy," Tony pointed out. "Thor said your kind were pacifists."

"Asgard was home of many strategists and warriors. I may be against violence, but I studied strategy out of pure interest, though it did help when Thor would drag me off on his adventures. There were also games we played that required such knowledge."

"So you've been here more than once?" Bruce asked.

"I've spent time in every world, but Midgard has become one of my favorites. I came here often after the genocide of my people although I spend my time in various places as it hurts to watch each kingdom fall. The last time I was here, Europe was at war," Freyja answered, her tone sounding almost sad as she spoke the last sentence.

"So where you just Athena and Freyja," Tony asked. "Or did you have more names?"

"Every visit to this world brings a new name. I have been called Athena, Juno, Perenelle, Druantia, Alys, Isis, Alaghom Noam, Kwahn, and many others. Inconsistency seems to be natural for you, in more ways than one, though I cannot entirely blame you for it. Life spans as short as yours will stand to have drawbacks. For example, no matter how many times I try to enlighten your race, you seem to forget everything I've said within a century. I cannot recall how many times I informed people the Earth was relatively round before Christoforo made his wager against me."

"Christoforo?" Steve asked. "Do you mean Christopher Columbus?"

She nodded, "I will never forget his expression when I showed him what Midgard looked like from the heavens. He was surprised that a woman knew better than he, though he wasted no time in using the knowledge to swindle the King of Spain. I still have my winnings." – she pulled a flawless ruby the size of a ping pong ball out of her pocket, placing it on the table – "He was not content to part with it, apparently it was a gift from a dutchess, but Christoforo was a man of his word."

"Do you always carry jewels in your pockets?" Tony asked.

"Of course," she answered, replacing it in her pocket. "Gemstones have the ability to hold reserves of energy. Sorcerers keep gems on their persons in case of emergencies. I can go for weeks without food or water so long as I have a few with me."

"Do you really expect us to believe that," Natasha scoffed.

Freyja stared at her as if the question was beyond ridiculous, "Of course. I may not speak the truth at all times, but I never lie."

They stared at her as if she were crazy, making her stop short. Did they really not understand what she had said? But, then again, many Asgardians had not understood certain things she said from time to time. Thor had said it was because of the half-truths, but the confusion was unthinkable to her.

"And that means?"

She sighed, "My people are incapable of lying. It is a…quirk, as you would say. But we do not speak the full truth when we do not feel the need for it."

"No wonder Fury has been irritated lately," Clint laughed. "He said you hadn't been cooperative. What was it you refused to tell him?"

Freyja shifted uncomfortably in her chair, "Nothing your people has a necessity to know."

Tony grinned, "You really do know how to play with words. You never say anything that might give something important away."

She smiled over her water bottle, "The secret is millennia of practice."

"Is that why Loki is so good at lying?"

She choked on the sip she had just taken, not expecting Natasha to speak up, and certainly not expecting that particular question to be asked. Her hand flew up to her lips as she coughed, the action meant to hide a grimace at the mention of Loki.

"Thor told Fury that you taught Loki how to use magic and how to lie."

She covered her discomfort with laughing, silently cursing Thor for his recklessness, "I may have taught Loki magic and the more complex way of speaking but, believe you me, he was very aware of how to lie before I met him."

"So it was your fault that Loki tried to take over Earth?"

For the first time since he had stepped into the restaurant, Freyja's eyes locked onto Barton's. In that second, when he saw the outrage in their blue depths, that he almost wished she'd look away. But he was not afraid of her. Regardless of whether or not she could turn him to dust at the wave of her hand, he had a bone to pick with Loki and anyone who associated with the so-called god.

"I beg your pardon."

"You gave him the ability to do what he did. You put power in the hands of a monster. His actions stemmed from yours. You're equally responsible for all of the deaths he caused."

Freyja stood up abruptly, causing her chair to wobble precariously, "How was I to know Loki's actions? The Loki I knew hadn't been capable of mass genocide."

"But your kind can predict the future, right?" he demanded. "What kind of irresponsible moron gives someone that much power without checking out how he'll use it later?"

Freyja gave a sharp sigh of disgust, moving away from the table. The anger in his eyes reminded her too much of the dead man's. Memories of his weight above her and his hot breath against her neck, memories she had tried to push down for so very long, and she needed to escape the walls that seemed to be closing in around her. But his fingers clamped around her wrist in a far too familiar manner and she panicked.

It wasn't her intention to enter his mind, but the contact sparked in him a sense of recognition which was quickly followed by a panic of his own. Memories that were not her own invaded her thoughts and blocked out the world around her. She saw a spear tipped with a blue gem, a ruin of stone and earth as the ground collapsed before her, and Loki grinning wickedly within a damp tunnel. He was afraid of her in that moment, she realized, because her mind invading his had felt similar to Loki's control.

A gasp escaped her as she managed to pull away from Clint, both mentally and physically. She stopped short, her expression changing from shock to horror as she realized what she had just done. Her fear only increased at the way he was looking at her, as though he had seen her own memories at the same time she had seen his. Everyone at the table stared at the two in silence as they stood only a few feet apart.

Freyja cursed in the language of her people and turned on the balls of her feet. She rushed out of the restaurant, slamming the door behind her and leaving the Avengers behind. She was appalled at the strength of the memories that had caused her to lash out so thoughtlessly. Her hand self-consciously moved up to where her dwarven armbands usually sat but fell when she realized they weren't there, as she was trying to appear marginally normal amongst the humans, to fiddle with the emerald ring on her finger.

As she walked down the crowded streets of the city, Freyja looked around at what seemed like chaos to her. Her times on Earth had been not too long before, by her standards, and yet so much had changed. When was the last time she had actually been to the city of New York? The last thing she remembered of Midgard was saying goodbye to Martin, the soldier she had befriended. He was likely dead, she thought sadly.

She can't remember when she was last in the city. Time spent on Midgard was distorted alongside the time of Asgard and the other Nine Realms. Her eternal life of running didn't help, either. But she had to keep running to keep herself alive, to keep others from dying, and to keep her promise to her people. Her thoughts drifted again to the marks on the insides of her armbands. How many marks, how many lives, carved into the gold? She had lost count when the number passed two hundred and she had been forced to make them smaller. It sickened her to think that the ever-growing number was her fault, but there was no way around it.

Not for the first time, she wondered whether she should end it all. But, then again, the enemy she was running from would simply continue to ravage the worlds until he found what he looked for. Until he found what she kept from him and how to use it entirely. And though she knew she was the only one who had what he wanted, she didn't doubt his tenacity to find it out regardless of whether she was dead or alive. Why he wanted to know so desperately, she would never know, but it was her job to protect it.

But she didn't want to think about such morbid things. She had escaped one fate of dying only to stumble upon eternal suffering. The years of living with the fact had somewhat made her acclimated to it, to where it was only a dull, ever-present ache at the back of her mind. She had more important things to keep in mind, particularly her meeting with Thor in what she guessed would be a few minutes. All she had to do was make her way through the city back to the Avengers Tower.

Freyja turned in a circle, trying to guess which direction was the right one. It didn't take long for her to realize that she was utterly lost and a very unladylike word in Vaniric accompanied the epiphany. Fueled by determination, she straightened up and walked briskly in one direction, fervently hoping she was going the right way. She figured that if she walked for long enough, it would be nigh on impossible to miss the very large building with a massive A on the top corner.

Thor paced back and forth in Tony's penthouse, his fingers twitching towards Mjolnir's handle as Jane and Tony sat on the couch and exchanged a glance. It was an hour after noon and Freyja had yet to turn up. A million different scenarios rushed through the thunder god's head, each one worse than the next. He fervently hoped she was alright.

"What were you thinking, allowing her to leave on her own?" he suddenly growled at Tony, causing both humans to jump. "She does not know this city. What if something has happened to her?"

"I didn't let her go anywhere on her own, she ran out of the place before we could stop her," he protested. "Besides, why do you care about her so much? Who is she to you?"

Something flashed in his blue eyes, "We were close when we were young. And she means much to a man I know."

Tony stood up from the couch, "Ah, yes. Her 'lover'. Who is this mysterious man no one will talk about?"

"That is none of your concern."

"Was he someone she shouldn't have been with? A thief? A servant? Give me a hint."

"Tony," Jane hissed in warning.

"I would not tell you anything if I wished to," Thor all but snapped. "I will not betray Freyja's trust."

"She'll never know," the billionaire laughed. "I won't tell."

Tony soon found himself face-to-chest with the blonde god as the distance was suddenly closed between them. Before Thor could reply beyond glaring down at the man, the elevator doors slid open and Freyja walked in looking relieved. She slumped against the wall to the side and gave a sigh of gratitude.

"At last. I was beginning to believe I would never find it," she laughed.

"Where have you been?" Thor exclaimed.

"Have peace, Thor," she said softly. "I simply needed a respite and I got lost in my search."

"Do you have any idea how worried I have been? There are more dangers in this world than you can count in your lifetime."

"Oh, Thor, I was not aware that you cared for me so," she teased half-heartedly, something she hadn't done in millennia. "I'm touched."

He shook his head at her, "You wished to speak with me?"

She nodded, "The chamber I have been given is just down this hall. I trust we shall have no problem speaking privately there. You are welcome to join us, Doctor Foster."

She walked off with little more than a gesture towards the two, and Jane wasted no time in following the two gods. She watched with interest as the two seemed to have a silent conversation exchanged only by simple looks. Unbeknownst to her, they were having their own side discussion through the temporary link between their minds.

I believe you are mistaken, Freyja, he thought. I doubt Stark will leave us alone. He is too curious for his own good.

She smiled in return, Do you truly believe I am not going to use a silence charm? Honestly, Thor, sometimes you lead me to think your common sense does not exist.

She closed the door behind Thor and Jane, muttering a small incantation in her own language, as they walked around her. Silver mist trailed from her fingers as she locked the door. Thor sat down in a chair next to the desk Jane was leaning against, making the seat look twice as small.

"After I left you alone this morning," she started, "I found Loki in the dungeons."

Both the god and the human looked shocked by her words.

"Why would you look for Loki?" Jane asked, her tone becoming disdainful as she said the name.

Freyja sighed, "Loki was as much my friend as Thor is. And I feel…responsible in part for what he did to this world."

"What Loki did with the magic you gave him is not your fault," Thor told her.

Jane looked between the two in surprise, "You can give magic to other people? Could you do it with humans?"

"Only on a few. Human minds are slightly different than that of Asgardians and tend to overload too easily," she explained, returning her attention to Thor. "Have the Vanir in Asgard checked over his mind for traces out of the ordinary?"

"They attempted to, but he locked them out," he said. "He would likely allow you to look within his mind, if you came back with me."

She flinched, "I cannot do that, Thor."

"Stark informed me that you said you are running from something."

She grit her teeth, silently cursing the man, "I am."

"What are you running from? What hunts you?"

She hesitated before answering, "An enemy who wants what I cannot give him, what I refuse to give him. I cannot fight him. And do not offer your aid, for no one can. So I run and keep him chasing me, try to keep him from the innocent, and I will not put Asgard in danger."

Thor narrowed his eyes at her, his eyes roaming over her before focusing on her right hand, "What is that?"

She glanced down at her hand, noticing the bruise where Clint had grabbed her, "Nothing that means anything to you."

"What is it, Freyja?"

"It is a bruise, Thor, and nothing to be concerned over. It will heal by sunset," she answered curtly, quickly changing the subject. "I did not ask you here to speak of trivial things. I need to speak to you about the defenses within the dungeon."

"What of them?"

"You have combined magic-resistant runes with auric energy fields to restrain the prisoners' use of magic while keeping them within their cells. But using such extreme measures within close proximity of each other will cause a weakness in both."

Thor nodded in understanding, "I will alert Heimdall of this. Perhaps we can use the Cosmic Cube to siphon their energy…"

"No," Freyja snapped immediately. "You do not understand the properties of the Tesseract. The excess energy it contains will eventually spill out, tearing a rift in space directly beneath the palace and potentially destroying Asgard. It would be in both of our interests if you would return it to me."

He shook his head, "It is impossible. My father has given strict orders against anyone so much as touching it."

"If Freyja's people guarded it before, maybe she should take it back," Jane pointed out. "She would know how to protect it if she understands it completely."

Freyja gave a grateful smile, "Exactly. Besides, Thor, the Tesseract attracts too much unwanted attention, dangerous attention. Its presence in Asgard alone shall bring destruction down on your people. Just as it did mine."

He looked up, surprised, "The army that ravaged Vanaheim was after the Tesseract?"

She scowled, cursing her recklessness, "I was appointed its guardian, but the power drew too much attention to me. I hid it away here, practically buried in magic-suppressing runes, to keep it safe. But someone apparently took it from the family I left it with." – something hard flashed in her eyes, giving her face a haunted look – "Thor, if the Nine Realms are to survive, the Tesseract must be returned to me."

"What is the Tesseract? What was its purpose?"

"You know that I cannot tell you that."

Jane took a hesitant step closer, "Isn't there another way? There's no half-truth you can tell us?"

"Ignorance is safety," Freyja replied. "It is better this way."

"We can protect you, Freyja. Whatever enemy you face, he cannot withstand the might of Asgard."

She laughed nervously, "The whole of Vanaheim could not withstand his wrath."

"That is because the Vanir were not warriors."

She shook her head, "Return the Tesseract to me, Thor. I will keep the monster distracted and he shall never hurt anyone."

Jane shook her head at the two, "You can't possibly run for the rest of your life."

"I have done so for a millennium and a century. I can continue and no one else shall suffer."

"You will suffer," Thor countered.

"This is my burden to bear," she breathed, fiddling with her emerald ring. "It always has been, always will be."

Thor gestured to the ring, switching into his native tongue, "He gave it to you, did he not?"

She nodded, "He gave it to me before I left. A charm for good luck, he told me."

"He needs you, Freyja."

"He never needed me. It was why I loved him, because neither of us needed the other."

When she looked back up at him the anger had left her face, replaced by pain so strong he flinched. Jane shifted uncomfortably where she stood and, though she could no longer understand what they were saying, she felt as though she was intruding on a private moment between the two. Not that she minded. She could tell the relationship between Thor and Freyja was one of old friends, not of old lovers. Privacy in such moments was something she could give him easily.

Freyja fell silent, and he realized just how strong of a mask she had put up. She had built a fortress to hide behind, to try to keep herself strong. He wondered if he could do what she was doing were the roles reversed. Could he force himself to let go of everything he cared about to live on the run, to protect the Nine Realms? What could the Tesseract possibly be that was so dangerous?

"I chose to be happy once, to betray the wishes of my people and seek out my own whims. This is my punishment for my selfishness. An eternity spent away from what I love," she sighed.

"Freyja," Thor stood up, reaching for her hand.

She cringed away from his touch, reverting back to English, "I have taken too much of your time with such morbid subjects. You two should disregard my musings, enjoy the rest of the day."

"Are you sure?" Jane asked, concern for the other woman clear in her brown eyes.

"I'm certain," she assured the woman. "It would be unfair of me to take any more of your time. I imagine, knowing Thor, that you two do not normally find too much time together. I should not waste it."

Jane looked uncertain, but nodded in thanks as she took Thor's hand. It was obvious that he was worried for his friends and she wanted to provide what little comfort she could. Thor unlocked the door but, before he could walk out after Jane, he spared Freyja one last glance.

"People are not punished for seeking out happiness. It is not selfish to wish for joy in life. You deserve to be happy, Freyja. No one should have ever told you otherwise."

She stared at the wall, a blank expression on her face, but he knew she had heard every word. He took one last glance at the broken princess who sat on the edge of the bed before leaving. His laced his fingers through Jane's as they walked back down the hall, thanking the Norns that Jane had found him and not been permanently taken away. He could only imagine how Freyja felt.

Tony was standing behind the bar when they returned, mixing a drink while he whistled an upbeat tune. He looked up at the couple as they walked into the room.

"What did she want?" he asked.

"To discuss the defenses of Asgard's prisons," Thor answered, getting into the elevator with Jane.

Before the playboy could say any more, the doors closed behind the two. He gave a sigh of resignation as he went back to his drink.

"Jarvis, what was it that they were talking about in there?"

"I'm not sure, sir" the AI answered. "I couldn't hear a word."

"Hmm…"

The sound of a door swinging open caught his attention. He watched as Freyja, red-eyed and looking miserable, shuffled out. She barely stopped when she saw him, seemingly deciding that it was too late to sneak back to her room.

He raised his eyebrows, "You look like shit."

"That didn't translate properly, but it is not a compliment, I take it?"

"You need a drink," he continued.

She looked nervously at the glass in his hand, "I do not think that is a good idea, Vanir have a low tolerance for alcohol."

"Don't worry, I'll make sure it's not strong."

He poured a bright green mixture into a plastic shot glass, something he had bought while out since he didn't want her breaking all of his glassware, and handed it to her. She looked at it as if he had given her a frog.

"It's not going to bite, you know," he told her with a laugh. "Just don't let it hit the back of your throat."

"Forgive me, I was just surprised by the color," she replied, downing it without another word. "That…was not what I was expecting."

He refilled her glass and grinned, "Not used to drinks like this?"

"In Asgard, liquor is always some shade of amber, and do not taste of apple."

"Shame. Here's something you might like," he said as he pulled out a small bottle. "I've been saving this one for a while. It's supposed to hit you hard."

She laughed, "That does not make sense no matter how you look at it."

"Oh well," he said as he poured more in her glass, knowing that soon she would become more talkative – and then he would have answers.