Author's note: Thanks to all the awesome people who reviewed! I hope you all read The Pendant right after reading this because that story has so much potential and there is so much being planned right now! And I'm also not apologizing for Neena's sailor mouth. It's who she is; as she grows, she learns to keep a filter. Also, the italics in the story are for thoughts. Okay? And we meet more of the lovely Ana, who was written by Much Ado 96!
Warnings: A lot of swearing and some violence
Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel and any of its properties. I do not own Anastasia; she belongs to Much Ado 96 who is awesome to let me use her. I just own Neena.
Alright, so stomping around in her cell did not accomplish anything except for receiving strange looks from the prisoners in the cells nearby. And all her pacing did was make her even angrier, fueling the headache that was building in the back of her skull. "Fuck this!" she howled, much to the annoyance of the prisoners nearby. "How the fuck am I supposed to get home? Fucking pirate guy! Who the fuck does he think he is?"
She punched the wall hard, the prison cell rippling in effect. It didn't do anything to help her; it just made her right wrist hurt. "Damnit ow!" she howled, holding her wrist. "Fuck, did it break? Not again!"
She flopped down to the floor, eyes hurting just a little bit from the blindingly white room.
"What am I going to do?" she grumbled, drawing her knees up to her chest and digging her nails into her palm, a nervous trait she picked up over the years. "Dad's probably so worried; Rosario and Geraldo too. How am I going to get home?"
She felt tears begin to form under her eyes, but she wiped them away furiously. She would not cry; crying would not get her out of here. She just needed to calm down and try to find a way out. "IF there's a way out," she thought grimly. "I could be stuck here for a long time. And these people are so alien like. What if time works differently here? Dad could be an old man by the time I get home!"
"Stop it," she hissed to herself. "Focus on the present! Right now, just think of an escape plan."
She withdrew her knees, lying down against the wall with her face towards the window. It was cold, and her short-sleeved red work shirt didn't exactly warm her up. She wrapped her arms around herself, trying so hard to stay awake, but sleep sounded so good right now. So she tried to imagine herself back at home.
Back in her room, with her Captain America shrine and Mountain Dew yellow walls that really needed to be repainted. Back in the bed she had ever since she was seven years old with the dark wood headboard and blue blankets and sheets. All that did was make her chest tighten and tears gather at her eyes again. She could picture her father, tired and sad, wondering where on earth his daughter had disappeared to and whether or not she was alive and he should make funeral arrangements.
She allowed one tear to slip down her face before drifting off to sleep.
That night, or whatever time it was here, she dreamed of another world. A world where the women dressed in long, flowing dresses and the men in fine fitting clothing. She could hear elegant music and laughter coming from all sides of the room; men and women dancing around without a care in the world. So beautiful and god like, not at all human.
She could feel their energy and felt it rush through her veins. She wanted to join in and to her surprise, she was. She typically hated dresses, but this one felt different. She was the awe of everyone in the room; dressed in light blue and silver silk that emphasized her eyes. She danced among the crowd, feeling just as beautiful as they were, if not more. The music sounded so sweet in her ears, sounds that no mortal instruments could make.
She danced, even though she had no dance partner. She could see the dark haired man dancing with the blonde woman in a bright green dress. The man with the blonde mane danced with some woman with dark hair and the pirate guy danced with the queen, a smile on his face reserved only for her.
Then, the scenery changed. Instead of wearing a beautiful dress, she was in tattered black clothing covered in blood. The ring was on her right index finger, the light from the tapers casting an eerie glow on it. A knife was clenched tightly in her hand, the sound of blood dripping off it echoing in her ears. Men lay dead all around her and the stench of death was in the air.
She woke up then, heart racing as her eyes blinked open. Instead of the white ceiling that she was beginning to grow accustomed to, there were stars, and what appeared to be solar systems moving around one another. A few comets flew by and it reminded her of home, when she and her father would sit outside at night and he would point out the constellations and tell her the stories. Instead of cold there was warmth and she found herself lying on a feather soft bed rather than a cold floor.
"How are you feeling?"
She nearly fell off the bed at the sound of a gentle, motherly sounding voice. The older woman who had spoken to her last night sat down on the bed next to her, dressed in a light yellow and gold dress. Her hair was curled and pulled into an intricate up-do that made her look younger. Her dark blue eyes shone kindly at her. "My husband thinks if you spend time in the dungeons, your manners will improve," her lips curled into an amused smile. "I, however, disagree. So, tell me child, what is your name? I am Frigga, Queen of Asgard."
Alright, so this woman appeared to be a lot nicer than her husband, but that didn't make her trustworthy. "Neena," she said in a slow voice. "Neena Brooks."
"That's a pretty name," the Queen began kindly. "And how did you come across Asgard?"
"Uh, I really don't know," she answered honestly, almost a little proud of herself for not swearing. "Good for you," she thought to herself sarcastically. "Do you want a shiny gold star?" "I was just driving along, doing my job, and then I was on your table. Um, sorry about the mess?" she added weakly.
"You made quite the entrance; that you did," she stood up, dress trailing behind her as she walked towards a table. "Tea?"
"Shit, is she going to poison me? Wait, she's the queen. Would she? She seems nice," thoughts were racing across her mind as the Queen poured the liquid into two small silver cups. She took the cup carefully as the older woman handed it to her. "Thanks," she nodded, bringing it slowly to her lips. It was warm; with some sort of sweetener that tasted bizarrely like honey. "It's good!" she said in surprise.
The amused smile returned to the Queen's face. "I retrieved you from your cell a few hours ago; you were out cold. A dungeon is no place for a child."
"I am not a child!" she snapped, forgetting who she was talking to for a second. "I'm fourteen!"
"Of course you are," whether or not the Queen was being condescending; she had no idea. "The last young lady who was in your position is a lot like you. You share the same spark."
"Well, good for her," she grumbled, setting the cup down on the table. "And who is this oh so special young lady?"
"The woman who healed your wrist," the Queen said pointedly, glancing down at the appendage. "And I healed it again while you were asleep. You certainly like to hit things."
"Really?" she rolled her eyes, sarcasm dripping from her voice. "Look, uh, Queen Frigga. Do you know how I can get home? I'm from Earth; I don't know if you know where that is, but I live there. My Dad is probably really worried about me right now." Maybe if she played the "I have family back home." card then maybe the queen would send her home. After all, she always thought that most queens were very motherly anyway. Most of the them, that is.
"So you're from Midgard. That's what I thought," the Queen looked extremely pleased with herself. "But, that doesn't answer the question that everyone is wondering," she sat back down next to her, dark blue eyes rivaling the color of the ocean. "How did you get here from Midgard. Last time we checked, humans don't really know anything about Asgard."
"Yeah, well, I told you that I don't know!" she stood up, now realizing that her clothes had been switched out. Instead of jeans and her work shirt, she was wearing a simple light gray dress. She froze. Where were her clothes? Shit, had some weird person touched her while she slept? "What did you do with my clothes?" she asked, almost ready to panic. "And who undressed me?"
"Hm? Oh, one of my handmaidens undressed you," the Queen replied. "And don't worry, your clothes are being washed. They were quite filthy with all that food, don't you think?" her eyes twinkled with amusement.
"Well how was I supposed to know you were having a feast?" she thought to herself. Granted, the knowledge of her clothes made her feel a little bit better, but not by much. "So, when can I go home?" she asked, looking out the window. From what it looked like, it appeared it was little after eight in the morning. If there was such a thing as morning here. "Your highness," she started in the sweetest tone she could manage. "I hate repeating myself, but could you please tell me how to get home?"
"I'm afraid it's not possible, at the moment," Frigga confirmed, all looks of amusement and kindness gone. "Your arrival and the commotion caused by Lady Anastasia all in one week is, well to put it mildly, disturbing. My husband, Odin, does not think it is a coincidence. He has his suspicions of why there is another being from Midgard in our realm."
"And you think I decided to come here on purpose?" She asked, tone darkening slightly.
"I'm not saying that at all," Frigga continued, narrowing her eyes. "I don't think you came here on purpose and Lady Anastasia, well, has issues that she needs to work on. I know too many things, some of which I really don't want to know."
A smile grew, which made her relax a little bit, but not for long. Suddenly the doors were thrown open and the man with the golden mane walked in holding her bag of tacos. "Mother, I have eaten one! They are delicious! What are these," he held up the bag. "Tacooos?"
Neena cringed at the way he pronounced them with a long o, not a short o. Frigga just stared at her son in confusion. He strode towards her, holding the bag to her face; taco in the other hand. "Mother, you must try these delicacies!" he exclaimed vibrantly. "Here, eat one!"
"I'll try one later, my son," she put his arms down firmly. "Right now, I'm speaking to Neena."
"Mother, did Father permit you to release the prisoner?" the man with raven hair appeared in the doorway, looking at her suspiciously. She suddenly felt the urge to flip him off, but didn't.
"No," Frigga said coolly, placing her hands on Neena's shoulders. "And young ladies don't belong in prison," she nodded towards the blonde woman, Anastasia. "And didn't you get Ana out of prison, Loki?"
Loki rolled his eyes. "Thor and I agreed upon the conditions of her release," he countered, his arm linked with Ana's. "We didn't agree to have this child be released as well.
"You didn't hesitate to release Ana." Frigga narrowed her eyes.
"I actually wasn't imprisoned at all, if you remember correctly" Ana brought up, eyes meeting Neena's for a brief moment. "How was your night in prison, Neena?"
"It fucking sucked," she found herself saying flatly, not at all caring what these people thought of her. "What did you do to get on the old pirate's bad side?"
Frigga looked confused as well as Thor. Ana laughed, "I attempted to kill him upon our first meeting. Not such a big deal in the grand scheme of things."
"Wow, that's fucked up," she stated rather bluntly. "And you're with tall, dark and creepy?"
"You could say that. Draw what conclusions you may," Ana shrugged while the man rolled his eyes.
"So you're together? And pirate guy approves? Doubt it." She rolled her eyes at the woman. She certainly seemed full of herself. In fact, now that she paid more attention to her, she reminded her of, well, a Barbie. Only with more muscle tone and wider hips.
"The All-Father does not really have a say in what I can and cannot do."
"So you're screwing the All-Father's son? Wow, you're more of a skank than I thought," Neena rolled her eyes, finding this woman to be rather arrogant. "Can I go home now?"
Ana's eyes widened, "Come here and say that," she broke from his arm and took a step toward her.
Neena stepped forward, chin tilted up in boldness. "I said that you're a skank. Or would you rather prefer the word slut?"
A silver stick appeared in her hand and she closed the distance, taking a swing and smacking her knees, sending her the ground. "Watch yourself," she warned.
"Fuck you, you psycho bitch!" Neena cried, knees now throbbing in pain. "Fuck, that really hurt!"
"No shit. If you can't take what you dish out, I advise you stop your bitching."
"Ana, that's enough," Frigga stepped in between them, the silver stick in Ana's hand disappearing. "Neena, are you alright, child?"
"Damnit, I'm not a child!" she spat, but was ignored by the other four people in the room.
Frigga cast a withering look at Ana. "Heal her. Now."
"Get that bitch away from me!"
"Get over yourself," Ana backhanded her across the face, grabbing her knees sending another tingling sensation through her as her knees healed.
The second her knees were healed, her right leg lifted and she kicked her in the face. Her face smug with satisfaction as the woman looked surprised. Actually, everyone looked surprised; but she reveled in the bewilderment of the blonde woman Ana.
Ana brought a hand to her nose and saw the blood dripping, "That's it." She grabbed Neena by the arm and slammed her up against the wall, holding a dagger next to her face, "I'm trying really hard not to kill you right now."
Loki stepped in behind her, prying her arms off Neena. "That's enough, darling," he murmured into her ear in an attempt to calm her down. "Don't let this child rile you up." After he spoke Ana slapped him firmly across the face, huffing as she backed away from Neena. "Alright then," Loki stretched out his jaw."
Neena slumped against the wall, banging the back of her head against the wall. "What the fuck is happening?" "Shit, tall dark and creepy looks like he's into kinky business. Actually, he's kind of hot. Damnit Neena, pay attention!" she scolded herself, narrowing her eyes.
"Can we please just have a grown up discussion?" Frigga asked, not at all pleased. "Ana, you're over eight hundred years old; grow up. Loki, you're responsible for Ana; you should have kept a better eye on her. And Thor, stop eating the poor child's tacos!"
All three of them looked dumbfounded at her. "Are you implying that this is my fault?" Loki asked.
"No, I'm implying that it's all of your faults," she helped Neena up, giving her a stern look. "And you need to watch your mouth before Ana or someone worse rips it off."
"It would be a complete shame if she didn't have it, I completely agree," Ana sneered. Neena just showed her the middle finger.
"And it would be a shame if you didn't have your boyfriend to keep a leash on you!" she sneered back, completely ignoring Frigga's advice.
Ana began to rise from her seat but Loki held her back, "Darling, she is only a child. She will learn her manners eventually." He turned to Neena, "I suggest sooner rather than later."
"And I suggest you put your bitch on a leash," she stood her ground, ignoring Ana's enraged look. "I suggest sooner rather than later."
Loki's eyes went big, realizing what was about to happen. "You've done it now," Ana growled, shoving Loki aside and trudging across the room. She grabbed Neena by the throat and began draining the life from her. "Anything else you wish to say?"
"Fuck you!"
Next thing she knew, there was darkness. When she awoke, she found herself lying on a stone table with a bunch of sand-like floating particles above her head. Her head hurt, shit, everything hurt. She groaned, signaling to the others that she was awake. Frigga appeared at her side, giving a rather exasperated smile to her. "You really did yourself in, child."
"I am not a child," she managed to whine. "What did that psycho Barbie do to me?"
"Oh, she just drained most of your life energy. Then smacked you in the head and caused you to black out. She tends to do that when provoked."
"Well no shit," she grumbled. "Do you have any Tylenol? Advil? Fuck it, give me vicodin!"
"If you hadn't been so rude, she would have healed you. But unfortunately, you're going to have to allow your body to heal itself. I suggest you two apologize to each other later," Frigga commented. "I'm not taking sides, but you two were behaving very unladylike."
"That bitch is no lady!" Neena sat up, flinging the particles away. "What the hell is this?"
"The Infirmary," Frigga nodded towards the table. "She drained quite a bit of energy, so I brought you here. It allowed you to heal yourself quicker and give us insight to a few things that were brought to light."
"Like what?" she asked, now a little bit curious. And concerned.
"That you're not one hundred percent human," Frigga said gently, making sure that she was sitting down. "When Ana drained your energy, she found out you're part Asgardian."
"What does that bitch know?" she snapped. "Wait? Asgardian? What's that?"
"What a majority of us here are. Excluding myself and Anastasia; we don't know what she is. We all thought you were human, but you're not. At least, not entirely."
"The fuck?" she hissed, headache increasing. "What does that even mean? That my Dad fucked an alien? Ew, gross!"
"Well that's putting it mildly," Frigga began in disapproving tone. "We're not aliens; that's a concept the humans came up with. Rather insulting in my opinion. Asgardians are at the center of the nine realms. Considered immortal by any human mind, but that's an exaggeration. We only live on average just five thousand years."
"Five thousand…" she trailed off, too shocked to say anything else. "My Dad screwed a one thousand year old whore?"
"Well, give or take five thousand years. But yes, this situation is a bit bizarre. Odin is very displeased with you."
"Well it's not like I asked to be created! Fuck him!" she snapped, now feeling a bit like herself. Then, it hit her like a ton of bricks "Oh God, my Dad screwed an alien. Why does bad shit always happen to me?"
"So the halfling has awoken," came Odin's voice, disapproving and stiff. "And her manners haven't improved. I hear she got into a fight with Loki's lady Anastasia."
"That bitch had it coming!" she growled, thoughts thinking back towards the woman with long blonde hair. "She's too full of herself."
"And you aren't?" Frigga asked wryly. "Did you question why Ana attacked you in the first place? If you had just ignored her comments, this wouldn't have happened. Not that Ana is entirely innocent either, but I don't have time to listen to children squabble."
The doors opened and tall, dark and creepy walked in. "What's he doing here?" she asked outloud. "Is his bitch on a leash? Or do we need to get a shock collar?"
Frigga glanced at Odin. "See? Attitude over here."
"I am simply here to check in on you," Loki answered.
"Well that's not creepy at all," she rolled her eyes. "Okey-doke, so we all know what I am, so can I for the love of God get the fuck out of here?"
"You are not permitted to leave Asgard until we understand how you came to be. When that day arrives, we will allow you to return to your home. While you are here you must be respectful, or else your stay will only be more difficult," Odin explained. "Is this clear?"
"But my Dad!" she exclaimed. "He's probably worried! I'm all he has! Let me go home!"
"We will notify your father that you are safe here. For your protection you are to remain under either Frigga's supervision or my sons. This is for the best."
"How do you know what's best?" she snapped, feeling more rage build up inside her. How dare these aliens keep her here! "You're not my boss; you can't tell me what to do!"
"Very well," Odin began. "I will have you secured in the dungeons once more. Until your manners improve and you cooperate with us, you shall remain there. No objections," he said finally, before exiting the room.
"You're going to let him do this to me?" she asked, in total shock, to Frigga. "Aren't you supposed to protect me or something?"
"We are by keeping you there, unfortunately," Frigga sighed. "Loki, please escort Neena to the dungeon."
"Yes, Mother."
"I don't want to go with tall, dark and creepy!" she protested.
"This is the attitude Odin was referencing," Frigga lectured, hands on her hips. "If you keep this attitude up, you'll dig yourself deeper than you already have."
"Whatever," she grumbled.
"Come along now," Loki motioned for her to follow. "Either come willingly or I will have to get the guards to take you, your choice."
"Damnit all to hell," she hopped off the table and followed him, obviously struggling with the lack of energy. "I'll come willingly, but not peacefully!"
"I would expect nothing less," he offered an arm to help her steady, but she slapped it away.
"Don't touch me!" she snapped, still struggling to follow him. "I don't know where your alien hands have been!"
"Very well. If it pleases you, I may tell you exactly where they have been?"
"Fuck no!"
They continued to walk down the corridors, with him exactly ten steps ahead with his hands neatly behind his back and her barely being able to see straight. Her legs felt like lead and all she felt like doing was collapsing on the floor.
"Do you wish for assistance now?" she heard him call.
"I would rather crawl than let your alien hands touch me!"
"You're so much like Anastasia," she heard him laugh to himself.
"Bastard," she growled, but it came out more like a rasp. "Commie bastard."
"I apologize for this," he turned around and flung her over his shoulder as if she were a measly sack of potatoes. "I have more important matters to attend to than babysitting children."
"Like screwing your bitch?" she muttered in a snarky voice, attempting to kick him, but he simply moved his head with ease. She just ended up flailing around, which only further fueled her embarrassment.
"I must meet with my brother to discuss his future as king of Asgard, if you must know. But do tell, why does it interest you so?"
"Oh my God, stop talking!" she groaned, she pounded her fist on his back, but since he was wearing armor, it didn't affect him much. Instead, she just kept hurting her knuckles. "Ow, fuck! Why is your armor so damn hard?"
"I believe that is the purpose of armor," he retorted.
"Fuck off." She muttered in defeat, going limp.
She was silent the rest of the trip, though her head kept hitting the armor and her face was now red with embarrassment as other aliens stared at the scene of their prince with a tiny little girl over his shoulder. "Damn," she grumbled. "Why does bad shit always happen to me?"
"'Bad shit' normally happens to those who ask for it," he set her down outside her cell.
"Not always," she grumbled darkly, shivering a little. "Man, it's cold down here. And I'm hungry."
"I will have the guards bring you blankets and a warm meal. Does that sound good?" he asked.
"No, I would rather go home," she could feel tears form in her eyes, frustration building up. "I want to go home. My Dad; he's all I have," her lower lip began to tremble slightly. "Can't you take me home? Please?"
Loki didn't know what to do in the moment so he scooted her inside the cell awkwardly, "I'll send for the blankets and food," he told her before leaving her in the plain cell. She just flopped over, letting the tears fall down her face; too tired to deal with them.
Alright guys, that was chapter two! Hope you enjoyed it because there is a lot more coming in the future. Poor Neena, though she kind of got what she deserved.
