A/N: My Hela is more from mythology than the comic books with some of my own interpretation thrown in. She will have many of the powers that Hela had in the comics. (So don't freak out that she isn't half-light and half dark right now :) ) More on what I see as my Hela in the next chapter's A/N also, but I want you to have this chapter before those notes.

Chapter 2

Shocked covered the faces of the people that were gathered in Tony's penthouse. No words were said. Thor's shock slowly turned to anger, but he voiced no comment.

Loki remained composed. "Is your magic depleted?" Hela nodded her head emphatically. "Do you have any left?" Hela shook her head and held her index finger and thumb about a centimeter apart to indicate she had very little magic remaining. "Can you stand?" Hela nodded her head. Loki helped her up to a standing position. She stood about 5' 8''; she was tall but still 6 inches shorter than her father. She was muscular but still slender. She looked like she was in her early 20s, even though that was probably not an accurate estimate of her age. Her skin was pale in the places that were not bruised and she had strong checkbones.

As they stood beside each other, with the same piercing green eyes; there was no doubt they were father and daughter. Loki slid his arm around her wait to help her walk but as she advanced a couple of steps he could see how weak she was. He reached down and scooped her up and carried her to one of Tony's sofas and placed her onto the seat. He sat on the coffee table and examined the stitching in her mouth.

The others gathering around.

"Can you remove the cord, brother?" Thor inquired.

"It is enchanted. I cannot dissolve it with my magic restricted, but I can weaken its hold enough that I can unwind the stitches." He looked at Hela. "I won't be able to do anything about the pain. I can stop the bleeding, but I won't be able to heal the wounds. That is something you will have to do when you regain your magic or I can do if I have full use of mine." Hela nodding her head indicating she understood.

"I will require some items." Loki stood up made his way to the kitchen while the others followed. Hela waited on the sofa.

"I will need a bucket or waste receptacle…2 glasses of water….and a towel. Her magic is depleted to a dangerous level and she is in a near mortal state. She will need sustenance…food to help her regain her strength and magic then she can heal herself more quickly."

"Food, I have tons of food, I can make her anything that we have. We can order out….does she like Chinese…Ooooo we could order schawarma, I could go for some schawarma." Tony rambled on quickly trying to help.

Bruce looked at Loki, "We can give her an IV and send nutrients directly into her blood stream through a needle. That will help speed it up."

Pepper offered "I'll go get things together so she can bathe and get a bed ready so she can rest." Loki offered a small smile and bowed his head to thank her. Pepper went back to the other rooms of the penthouse.

Loki turned to Thor. "I need you to hold her and keep her arms still." Thor nodded, "Yes, of course."

They gathered the items Loki requested and proceeded back to the living room.

Thor sat on the sofa.

Loki spoke as he sat on the coffee table across from Thor, "Thor is going to hold you and your arms still while we do this. I know it's going to be painful. I'll do it as quickly as I can." Hela nodded and climbed in Thor's lap, he smiled warmly at her. He wrapped his large arms around her pinning her arms to her side at the elbows.

"Are you ready?" Hela nodded. She stared at a spot on the far wall and readied herself.

Loki used an initial burst of magic to weaken the cord. Then without actually touching the cord, he used his magic to pull on the stitches. He pull the first little bit through the first hole below her bottom lip. A small drop of blood started to ease out of the hole. Hela's breathing sped up a bit. Loki continued pulling the stitching out through the holes in which they were woven. He had gotten a quarter of the way across her mouth as her breathing started at a faster pace. She was trembling and pushing out against Thor's arms. Her fists were clenched and her head started to shake.

"Hold still, Hela." Loki continued to pull the stitches through. Hela continued shaking and tears began stream down her face. "Hold still, my love"

Bruce came behind the sofa and slowly reached over the left side of Thor. As gently as he could, he placed his hands on either side of her head, just below her ears. He used his thumbs to steady the back of her head and placed his fingers across her check and jaw line. Hela relaxed her head into Bruce's hands as he held her steady.

Loki was halfway through the stitching that sealed her mouth closed. Hela hands were still gripped into fists, tears still streamed down her face, her body trembling against the hands that were holding her still. No one said a word. Loki started softly humming, barely audible as he watched her mouth. Hela's eyes turned and focused on Loki's face and she watched him as he worked at the cord binding her mouth closed, softly humming. Thor, who had been looking at the floor during this painstakingly slow operation, heard the humming and began to slowly recognize the melody that was flowing from Loki. He looked up slowly at his brother. Loki made no eye contact with Thor as he was still immersed in his difficult task. Thor returned his gaze to the floor, a small smile peeking through. His brother, the god of mischief, who had fallen into madness and darkness, who tried to conquer a realm with the help of evil forces …this brother, was softly humming a lullaby to his child; a lullaby that their mother had sung to them both when they were small.

Loki finished pulling the last stitch through Hela's mouth. He sent a pulse of magic through the sensitive area and the bleeding from the holes around her lips slowed and then ceased. 8 tiny wounds lined across the top and the bottom of her lips where the cord once was. Thor released his hold from around his arms and Bruce let his hands pull away from the back of her neck. Hela parted her lips, took a deep breath in and exhaled through her mouth.

Just then she felt the wretch surge forward from her stomach and stop. Loki reached from the floor and brought the bucket up that Tony had given them. The surge came again and Hela let loose and threw up into the bucket, sliding from Thor's lap as she purged. Lifting her head she took one of the glasses of water and downed it quickly. A second later she was wretching into the bucket again. This time when she was done, Loki handed her a towel and she wiped her mouth. He handed her the second glass of water. "Just small sips this time."

She nodded and took a small sip. She looked at him and then got a quizzical look on her face. He return the gaze with the same look. "What is it?" he asked.

Hela stared at him for another moment and took another sip a water.

"How in the Nine Realms did you get out of prison?"

Loki chuckled to himself. "That dear, is a question for your uncle."

Thor laughed at that response. He turned to her. "Lady Hela what has happened? Who has done this to you? Why are you not in Hel?"

"Slow down uncle. My mouth has been sewn shut for almost a month and I feel like I have been through battle."

Bruce spoke up. "We can give you some pain medication. I don't know if it will work on you, but we could try."

Hela smiled slightly at Bruce. "Yes. I'll think we could try that."

She turned back to Loki and Thor. "I have been held captive for two months."

"By whom?" Thor inquired

"Thanos"

Loki and Thor's eyes grew wide. Thor looked to his brother, but Loki did not turn to share glances.

Thor looked back to Hela. "What need would Thanos have with you?"

She looked to Thor. "Thanos seeks to exact revenge for a failed plan. He decided to hold me captive in an attempt to draw out the traitor." Her eyes turned to Loki as she said traitor but then returned her focus back to Thor. "Thanos thought the planned attempt to take over Midgard would have succeeded had it not been for sabotage….thus the traitor needs to be punished."

Thor looked confused. Hela shot Loki a knowing look. He looked at her with an expressionless face not acknowledging what Hela was trying to imply.

She continued talking. "So when my magic became thoroughly depleted, I developed a plan to escape and then I carried out that plan."

"So how did you end up here?" Loki moving the conversation away from the topic of Thanos.

"I couldn't go back to Hel in the condition I was in; I didn't have enough power. I couldn't go to Asgard, obviously. I knew Midgard was under Thor's protection and he would be quick to come here if there was a disturbance. I've been here many times and I knew this structure was where I could find your friends, Uncle. When I was taken, I had hidden away in the fabric of shadows and space my bracelet that Grandmother had given me when I was sent out of Asgard. One of the charms on it was an orb with a drop of power from the Jutun Casket. When I was ready to escape, I had just enough power to retrieve my bracelet. I used the power from the tiny orb to teleport here and conjure Midgardian clothing. Once I was here I conjured the notes to communicate with your friends."

Loki broke in. "What are your injuries?"

"I only stopped healing 2 weeks ago. That's when I knew I had to get away. I think I have several broken ribs. You can see the bruises and then well…my mouth. Once my magic is replenished I'll be able to heal again."

Pepper came into the living room and indicated that she had readied the things she had said she would.

Thor stood. "Why don't you go with Lady Pepper and you can bathe and then we can tend to what injuries we can."

Hela tried to stand, but could not without assistance. Loki helped her up and helped her walk as Pepper led to them to a guest bathroom where a large whirlpool tub was filled with warm water.

Pepper looked at Loki. "I can help her from here. It's okay."

Loki sat Hela down on a cushioned stool in the bathroom. "Yes, thank you," bowing his head in gratitude.

Hela nodded to indicate she was okay and he turned and left.

Pepper helped Hela get her clothes off and step into the tub. "Here are some clothes that you can wear and I will wash these for you. If you need anything JARVIS can tell me." Hela look at her questioningly. "Oh….JARVIS is a computerized system…not a person. Just say something and JARVIS will answer. Isn't that right JARVIS?"

"Yes, Miss Potts."

"Oh, I see." Hela smiled and nodded.

Pepper left the large bathroom and Hela sank down almost totally submerged in the water.

Pepper reentered the living room area. Tony was talking to Thor. "Who is this Thanos?"

"He is known as the mad titan. Many ages ago he launched a war against the realms. He was defeated after several realms united against him. He was cast into the void and he has not been heard from since."

"So am I wrong assuming you're the traitor?" Tony looked at Loki with his palm on his chin and tapping his finger on his lips with a feigned questioning look on his face.

"The term traitor implies allegiance." Loki responded

"So then why is he pissed at you?" Tony looked at Loki.

"I failed to deliver the Tesserat to him." was all the reply that Loki gave.

Thor looked at Loki in shock. "Brother! It was Thanos who gave you the scepter and command of the Chitauri."

"Wait a second," Bruce inquired. "This Thanos gave you command of the Chitauri to conquer Earth in exchange for you giving him the Cube?"

"It appears you a have a firm grasp of the nature of the dealing." Loki spoke evenly.

"But that didn't quite work out the way you two had planned. So now your silent partner, doesn't seem so silent anymore" Tony added. "Well he sure did a number on your girl there. I'm still not quite following the whole sew someone's mouth shut kind of thing."

Thor added in a quiet tone. "In the other realms, it is not uncommon to punish liars in this symbolic manner."

"So has 'liar-liar-pants-on-fire' over here had his mouth sewn shut before?" Tony gesturing towards Loki. Loki made no response. "You have! That's how you knew she was going to puke. Man, mark that down for another episode of the reality show. Now we just need a great title."

Bruce jumped in to change the subject. "She said it was stitched shut for a month; how is she still alive?"

"Hela is a little different from us. She does not have to take in sustenance as often as we do. She possess some other…traits, as well." Loki answered.

Tony interjected. "You know…come to think of it…how is it that you…psychotic, delusional, maniacal you…has a daughter who seems pretty okay…you know except for the whole mouth being sewn shut, being beat to hell and all. She must be like her mother."

Thor choked back a laugh in part because of his knowledge of Hela's mother.

Loki replied, "I assure you she is nothing like her mother. Hela's personality will return when she has her strength."

"Wait…..what's the deal with her mother?"

"She is not alive. Anything else is no concern of yours."

"Do you have any other children?"

"No….despite what the Midgardian myths say, I do not.

Hela had soaked for an hour in the warm water, trying to wash away the remnants of her ordeal with Thanos. Thor must have done some pretty convincing pleading in order for the Allfather to let her father out of his prison cell. She was glad that he was able to remove the stitching from her mouth. She had continuously battered Thanos with words while he had her. Finally, he decided to stitch her mouth closed in an effort to silence her. She remembered how he told her he planned to do the same thing to Loki in the future as part of his revenge for failing to deliver the Tesserat to him as planned.

She pulled herself out of the large tub and dried herself. She found the clothes that Pepper had acquired for her. There were substitute undergarments in the form of a two-piece Midgardian bathing suit. She put the pieces on and then saw her reflection in the mirror in the bathroom. She looked like someone who had just arrived in her realm, weary from dancing so close to Death and then finally being taken into her sweet embrace. But she was still here, in Midgard of all places with her Uncle and Father. She pulled on soft cotton flannel pajama pants and a black tee-shirt that had the most interesting design on it. There was a large cross on the shirt and along the cross were 5 skulls. But these skulls were decorated. One had long blond hair and a red band around its head. Another had long curly black hair with a black hat. Two others had black hair as well and another with blond hair. She didn't understand the meaning behind the wording; across the top of the cross on a banner were the words "Guns N Roses" along the bottom of the cross another banner that read "Appetite for Destruction. Hela looked closely at the pictures again and smiled, she quite liked this shirt.

She slowly walked out of the bathroom through the hallway back to the open room where the others were waiting for her to return.