Thessana looked at the former Nazis' officer , trying to control her anger . She understood now why Howard insisted that Erik didn't have to come .

"I can't believe you're doing this … Can't fucking believe it . "

"Thess we did not hire them to reproduce the same scheme as the Red Skull or Hitler . You really think I would let this happen ? Or Peggy ? " asked Howard .

"You know that if Erik learns that he'll never forgive you . Or me , by the same occasion . I cannot lie to him . He's not a teenager anymore , I mean good lord Howard , he's close to his forties ! Don't you think he'll figure out everything ? Moreover since when this shit is going on ?"

"Right after the creation of Shield .."

"You're joking right ? You kept this from me during 20 years ? "

"Thess , I know your bonds with Erik . I knew you'll react badly that's why we decided to keep it . That's not against you . "

"I can't believe you … Those people need to die , end of the story . You don't have the slight idea of what they've done ."

"Please listen to me .."

"No . I … I need time to .. I need time ."

And she left his office , slamming the door . She nodded at the receptionist downstairs and walked out of the building . It was a hot day , and the heat was unbearable in New York . She couldn't come home now . Erik will ask questions . She needed a story .

Erik was waiting for her , a glass of whisky in his left hand , a cigarette in the other . He was listenning to music when she came in the living room and leaned over the armchair and hugged him from behind , burrying her head in his neck . Both of them didn't know how they became an item . It just happened with the time , both feeling a gap in their chest they needed to fill . Thessana wasn't looking for a substitute for Robb but Erik was as broken as her and he loved her deeply .

"Rough day ? I expected you earlier .. Howard called asking if you were already back .."

"Did he say something else ?"

"Nope .. Should he ?"

"No . What have you done today ?"

"Nothing , just a bit of reading then I went for a run . Why did they call you ? I thought we were on holidays ."

"Just asking a few questions about Steve … If I had any clue where he was .."

"He was useless , I don't see why everybody makes a fuss about him ."

"Don't be mean .. Do you want to eat something ? I can make a quick dinner if you want .."

"No I'm fine , I ate earlier , I didn't know when you would come back . "

"Perfect since I'm not that hungry neither .."

"Thess . Seriously , what did happen ? "

But before she could answer the phone rang . She picked it up before Erik couldn't even move .

"Yes ?"

"Thess ? This is Howard . Is Erik around ? And if yes , can he hear us ?"

"No . Why ?"

"Erik cannot learn about anything . Do not tell him anything about today ."

"I don't understand the purpose of this request .."

"We may found a track on Schmidt . Now he's called Sebastian Shaw . I don't think it'll help Erik to know he's still alive ."

"I'll make sure this doesn't happen ."

"I know you will . Have a goodnight we'll speak later ."

"Kay … Goodnight to you too ."

Erik stood and threw his cigarette in the ashtray waiting for her to say something .

"Are you planning on telling me who it was or do I have to guess ?"

"It was Howard again , he wanted to know if I felt something about the Tesseract when Steve threw it in the water ."

"Enough with Steve .. Let's go to bed ..."

He grinned and held her waist , kissing her .

"You've ruined me Erik Lehnsherr .."

"I know .. Just say to yourself that soon enough I'll be old and dead and you'll be young as a fresh flower .."

"Don't say that .."

"But that's what makes any moments together precious no ?"

Thessana didn't answer and got lost in her thoughts , forgetting about Erik . He laughed and kissed her hair then her neck .

"Come back to earth , my queen .."

"I know the solution … I can make you live as long as me ."

Erik let her go and looked at her , lost . He sat on the couch , ran a hand in his hair and looked at her again . How ? His voice was clear in her mind . He was so shocked he couldn't even speak .

"I have an Idunn's apple ."What ?! She pictured the golden apple in his mind and his eyes went wide . "Eat it and you'll live with me till the end ." Let's do this ..

The ring of the phone woke her up at dawn . Erik's arm was around her waist , keeping her close to him in a strong embrace . She removed herself soflty and ran silently to the phone , the sheet around her naked body .

"Yes ?"

"Agent Stark ? This is agent Carter ."

"Why so formal ?"

"Authorities around .." she whispered .

"Need me ?"

"Yes . Don't bring Erik ."

"I'll be there in 15 minutes .."

Thessana went to the bedroom where Erik was still sleeping . He looked healthier , almost glowing with this Asgardian essence that made them so special . She kissed his forehead and dressed quickly , taking her bag then leaving . The air was cold and for a second she felt like in Westeros . She shook that memory away and left .

When Erik woke up he found the house empty and no notes . He wandered in the kitchen to make some coffee but quickly got bored . He knew Thessana was hiding something but he couldn't find what . Maybe it is somewhere in the house .. he told himself and started looking everywhere .

Frigga came in her rooms , seeking some sleep , when she found Rickon on the balcony , Shaggydog by his side .

"What are you doing love ?"

Rickon didn't answer nor turn . Frigga moved to the balcony only to see a mess near her bed . Papers . The ones she tried to hide .

"I was only looking for you but Shaggy' growled and started to look under the bed . I never thought someone with magic would hide stuff under a bed this is so … Common . I decided to not look at it , after all it was not my business my Shaggydog kept growling so I took a look at it … I wish I didn't have any children so I wouldn't feel so guilty now . I realised I could live without them . But not without Robb . When did she wrote this ? Is she even dead or just hiding somewhere so she could live her life without a kid clutching at her leg ?"

"Rickon .."

"Don't try to defend her or treat me as a child ." stated Rickon as Shaggydog showed his teeth .

"She wrote it a little time after your birth . She wasn't feeling well , your father was away . Don't be too hard on her Rickon . She loved you no matter what and you know it ."

"But she would have been happier if Tommen or I weren't born ."

"I don't think so . She just wanted a nice little life with Robb I think . Her love for him was maybe too .. too much . But in the end Rickon , she did everything she could to save you . If she didn't love you never she would have done that ."

"So what ? Am I supposed to forget that ? What about my dad ? Felt any regret ?"

"Your parents loved you both dearly Rickon . So stop this nonsense ."

"What about this then ? Midgard isn't like Asgard or Westeros but I'm getting used to it . I met really interesting people and found myself grieving them once they were gone . I don't think I'll come back once I'll find the Tesseract back . I don't anything left back there . She's alive right ? "

"She is . But if you read the rest she says Rickon is safe with you . I miss him everyday but I just can't for the moment .. She's grieving in her own way . That's all ."

"Bullshit ."

He threw the letter to her and left the room , his direwolf behind him . Frigga took all the letters and hide them in the limbs thanks to her magic . She sat on her bed and sighed . Rickon was getting more and more curious . And wilder . Same for the direwolf .

"You need to come back Thess .."

"Sebastian Shaw . We don't know his age but we've been after him for a long long time . You may know him under the name of Klaus Schmidt . He was a doctor during the second world war . Working closely with the Red Skull . We found him in Russia . We don't know yet what's is going to do but we need to put a hand on him and quick . A note is going to be given to the agents leaving for Russia . You can all leave now . Stark ? Can you stay please ? Not you Howard . "

Howard looked at Thess then left after giving her a look that meant girl you're in trouble .

"Agent Stark , you're one of our best element . But your .. closeness to Agent Lehnsherr is your main weakness . We did not want him around today because of his past with our target . And I don't want you to say a word about it . You're one of the agent who's going to be send in Russia . I'll wait until tomorrow for your final answer . You know , give you time to come up with a story for this boy of yours ."

"Understand sir ."

"Good agent Stark . You may leave now ."

Thessana left the conference room and left for her office . She started to pin to the wall all the evidences of Shaw's presence in Russia , to come up with a plan .

"Not afraid that Erik just pops up ?"

"Unlike you Howard , he knocks ."

"Oh and once you'll let him in ."

Thessana waved her hand and everything disappeared .

"Oh I always forget that .."

"Yeah he does too .."

"Don't you miss it ? Where you're from ? "

"And where am I from ?"

"Oh you know … Far ."

"I miss it sometimes . But I know that I can't go back there ."

"Wasn't it your first goal ? To go back there ?"

"Indeed . But I thought about it a lot and I have a lot of … Unpleasant memories there ."

"More than here ?"

"Definitely ."

"What kind ?"

"The kind I don't like to share ."

"Not even with an old friend ?"

"Erik doesn't know neither ."

"Must be really unpleasant memories then ."

"Yes ..."

"Do you still feel the Tesseract ?"

"Why ? Did you find it ?"

"No , no .. Just wondering .."

"I don't . I think that I can feel it only when I'm angry . Really angry . And last time I was it didn't end up well . For several persons so I'm not planning on doing it again ."

"I don't think you can choose to be angry or not ."

"But you can push back the memories that make you feel anger or pain ."

"This is dangerous . It's like a bomb . The day those memories will come back it'll be .."

"Nothing . Because they are not coming back . Are you going to Russia ?"

"Nope . They have another job for me apparently . I can't believe that I helped create this thing and now they just give me missions ."

"At least you can have a life . How's your wife ?"

"Fine . We're trying to have a kiddo .."

"That's great Howard ! A little Stark .."

"Do you want any kids ?"

"Me ? No .. "

"Why not ? You'll be a terrific mother ."

"Yeah terrific ..."

"Never thought about it ?"

"Why are you asking all those questions ?"

"Didn't want to make you angry .."

"I'm not it's just .. Nothing . I have work to do .."

"Got it . Sorry Thess .. See you later ."

"Bye ."

Thess sat behind her desk and sighed , running a hand in her hair . It's Eleanor , the secretary that shook her out of her thoughts , telling her that Erik called several times .

"Tell him I'll call him later , I have some work to finish ."

"Fine Agent Stark ."

"Thanks Eleanor . "

As soon as the door closed , someone knocked .

"Yes ?"

"It's Peggy , can I come in ?"

"Of course ."

Peggy came in with a smile and sat .

"Did a really good job there ? Leaving when ?"

"Tomorrow or the day after . You're not leaving ?"

"No .. Uhm .. I'm pregnant !"

"Wow ..." is this the babies day or what ?! "That's incredible ! Congratulations !"

"Thanks Thess !"

"You don't look that happy .."

"I'm just … I've been thinking about Steve lately .."

"Oh .. "

Thess didn't come up with a better answer and stayed there , looking at Peggy to say something .

"What's that ?"

"Oh …." repeated Thess , looking at the paper on her desk . "This is a .. " she tried to come up with a convincing lie but nothing came . " This is a prayer wheel . I guess I draw it when I was thinking about old stuff . "

"What do they represent ?"

"Father , Mother , Maiden , Crone , Warrior , Smith and Stranger . The Seven Gods . Last time I made one it was in Germany for a little boy that got killed in a bombing . "

"I didn't know you were religious . "

"I'm not . But sometimes it's easier to think the ones we love are somewhere , in some heaven or hell than completely dead and gone ."

"Who did you lost ?"

Thessana looked at Peggy and remembered how she reacted everytime someone talked about Steve .

"Someone I cared about … You're lucky you know ? Steve died knowing that you loved him and you told him nice things . I didn't have that chance . "

Before Peggy could ask any questions , Eleanor came back .

"Erik's here ."

He stormed in , but thankfully she had been quicker and had hide the papers pinned on the wall .

"Erik ? What do you want ? I said I'll call you later ."

"Just wanted to check if you were really here since Eleanor made a fuss about not disturbing you ."

"With who do you want me to be ?"

"What about that lover of yours ?"

"What ?"

"What?" repeated Peggy .

"Don't take me for a fool . You done it for years so better drop the act now ."

"Are you fucking drunk ? Or on drugs ? "

"What about Robb ? And all those letters you two exchanges ?"

"By the Gods .. Where did you find those ?"

"In the closet , near the bathroom . Obviously your forgot them . Nice ones really . I miss you , the spark in your blue eyes , the warmness of your strong embrace , the leather taste of your lips on mine and how the snow melt in your dark curls . I love you my young wolf . Cute . Really . His are quite good too . "

"Stop . Let me explain . That's not what you think ."

" I can't wait to come back to see the sun shining through your golden hair . Remember the place where you taught me how to swim ? I cherish this memory . How the water was making your naked body blurry and yet I could see all his gloriousness . You were perfect . You're still . I love you my queen . Must say that he seems like a total moron . A pathetic one . Those kind of men are better dead ."

"Are you over ? Maybe you have forgotten your place , Lehnsherr . I saved your arse , let you come and live by my side , shared with you my life and welcomed you in my house . Have I ever lied to you ? No . Because unlike you , I have some values . The only reason you're alive is because of me . You're childish , pathetic , you don't have the slight idea what you're talking about . "

"Oh you want to talk about pathetic ? How do you call that life of yours ? Hiding and pretending you're normal , working with people beneath you and still treat them like your equals . "

"It's quite easy to treat them like equals when I've been living with a monster ."

Peggy retreated against the door when she saw green sparkles in Thessana's hand and some metallic objects started to move . She grabbed her gun ready to shoot the first one who'll make something wrong .

"What did you say ?"

"You heard me well Erik . You're a monster , a freak . An abomination and just the fact that you're still alive makes me want to vomit . It's because of you Hugo died . Do you remember him ? You only bring chaos and destruction , it's not fucking surprising that Schmidt wanted to kill you . You don't have any values , nor honor . You're just a pink little freak , who's been lucky enough to live that long . Contrary to your mother ."

Erik took a sharp blade , tied around his ankle and throw it to Thess , without even moving the little finger .

"You're far too slow on the draw "

"You seem bitter Thess ..." whispered Erik . "That boy of yours doesn't fuck you quite well ? "

Erik felt on the floor , his cheek red . Thessana hadn't move but her eyes were glowing . She walked towars him and knelt .

"Talk about Robb like that one more time and I swear by the old gods and new , that you'll pay for it . "

"Thess ..." gasped Peggy .

Both looked at her and Thess realised that the trick on the wall was gone . Erik stood and took the picture of Shaw off . Everything made with metal in the office exploded . Thessana shielded herself and when she opened her eyes she saw that Erik was gone and Peggy was on the floor . After checking Peggy was fine , she ran in the bulding , feeling Erik's magnetic field getting powerful and hearing people screaming . She arrived in the atrium and saw one of the guard shoot himself . Erik was holding several files . He killed the last person in the entrance and faced Thessana .

"Don't try to stop me . Deep down , I don't want to hurt you . But if you force me , I'll do it . "

"You cannot hurt me . "

"Why not ? After all thanks to that apple , I'm almost like you now . Goodbye Thessana ."

And he left , as if nothing happened .

After several hours of chaos , Thessana came back home . Erik's stuff weren't gone , only a suitcase with a few clothes . A picture of them was gone too . She went in the toilet and stayed there . Thanks some powerful forces , the pharmacy was open at night . Never in her life she thought that a little plastic stick would have changed her life and yet it was there , right before her eyes . Erik wasn't completely gone after all . He left her a baby .