Wanda pulls onto the street and parks haphazardly. There are still police in the area, knocking on doors, trying to find witnesses. She hardly notices, locking the car and dashing up Loki's steps. She knocks.

One of the officers calls to her, "Ma'am? Do you know Ms Odinson?"

"Yes."

He hands her a book, "Here. She was looking for this." Wanda takes it and brushes the dirt from the cover, "She mentioned it. Seemed like it's important."

"Thank you. Books are precious to her."

"She wouldn't let us call an ambulance."

"I will talk to her. She trusts me."

"Can I ask a personal question?" He lowers his voice.

"Yes?" Wanda leans over the rail to hear him better.

"Is she a he? Is that why she doesn't want to go to the hospital?"

"Yes, she is gender fluid. A type of transgender. And she is new to this country. Have compassion- she does not want to risk what it could be like at a hospital."

The officer nods, "I understand. My cousin is, too."

"Excuse me. I must go check on her."

"Of course."

Wanda turns back and knocks on the door again. No answer. She digs her key from her bag and lets herself in. The row house is still dark. She walks into the dining room an sees the keys tossed there. She turns to the living room and does not see anyone on the couch. But sitting beside the couch, huddled in the corner, is Loki, hugging her knees. Wanda drops her bag and wedges herself beside her friend, facing her.

"Here is your book."

She takes it and smooths the bent corner, "Thank you."

"Magda told me what happened."

"I thought she might." Loki sniffs and pushes her mussed hair back from her face, "Are there many people who are like that?"

Wanda wipes the streaked mascara from her cheek with her thumb, "There are some. I am so sorry, my friend." She leaves her palm resting on her face and Loki leans into the warmth of her hand.

"Why? Why is it such a terrible thing in this realm to be what I am?"

"I have seen those who use religion to justify this. I see fear in the eyes of those who scream the most loudly. And yet I do not understand how someone can see another and consider them worthy only of pain."

"I do not belong here, Wanda."

"But Magda and I believe you do belong right here with us."

"Nothing is right. This isn't right." She touches her breasts and her nipped in waist, "I don't want to do this anymore. I just want to be able to do what I used to be able to. I want things to be normal again. I want to be normal again."

Wanda holds her close, "I cannot undo what has been done. I cannot change Odin's mind and send you back to Asgard."

Loki twists and winces, jerking back, "That hurt."

"Where?"

"Here." She places a hand over her stomach. Wanda presses her hand against her and feels only the cinch.

"Will you allow me to loosen it?"

"Please."

She eases the cinch loose and unhasps the busk, then gently presses on Loki's abdomen where there is a bruise darkening, "May I check a different way?"

"What sort of way?"

"I cannot describe it well, but..." She holds up her hand and misty red tendrils snake up from her palm, "This. It is energy. It is with my mind. But I cannot tell you more than that. It was gifted to me by the sceptre and the work of HYDRA."

"Is it magic?"

"Of a sort...perhaps. I do not rightly know."

Loki is suspicious of this unknown sorcery, especially knowing it comes from the sceptre, but she also trusts Wanda far more than she thought she would trust anyone in such a short time. That she is an ally of Thor's helps, but moreso it is her kindness that has won her over.

"And you wish to use it to do what?"

"Look inside you. To feel where you hurt. And to see what it is that causes it."

"Will it hurt?"

"I do not know. I have only done this with Pietro as a curiosity." Loki still hesitates, so Wanda uses her little red tendrils to lift a towel from the back of one of the dining room chairs and brings it to her. She gently wipes Loki's smudged cheeks, "Do not let this stop you from being who you are."

"And who is that, exactly? I fear I do not exactly know."

"You are beautiful, my friend. And you are dear to Magda and myself. And you are Thor's sibling, no matter where you are. Because you are Loki. And I should check to make sure my Loki is not in need of a doctor. If you were anything like Thor before, this body is much more fragile than the one you once wore." Loki shifts her blouse and Wanda lays her hands on warm skin, "Are you ready?"

"Yes."

Wanda concentrates on her hands, her fingers pressing a in a few different places as she examines his organs, "Nothing seems out of place. Bruised deeply, yes, but you do not need to visit the hospital." Loki exhales a breath she did not realise she had been holding and cuddles against Wanda, "Rest. I will stay as long as you need me."

"Did you tell Thor what happened?"

"No. He has returned to Asgard. I cannot call."

"Oh."

"I am sorry. Would it comfort you if he were here?"

"Yes."

There is a sharp rapping on the door and Loki tenses; a harsh voice calls, "Hey! Come out and play, bitch!"

"It's him. Oh no, Wanda, he's back..."

"You stay here. I will deal with this."

"Where are the police? Don't go out there, you don't know what he'll do. Or if his friends are with him."

She stands, and he forces himself farther into the corner, "I am an Avenger. I can think of no better use of my title than to Avenge the wrong done against a friend."

"Be careful," she whispers. But Wanda does not hear her. Red crackles around her and she opens the door without touching it.

The young man on the other side stares, "Not you, the other one. The tranny."

Wanda says nothing, wrapping her tendrils around him and the two companions standing behind him. She raises them up and they shout for her to put them down. She does not. She tosses them into the ash in the centre of the park. They yell obscenities as she dials the police. And then she closes the door and returns to Loki.

"What happened?"

"I placed them in the ash at the centre of the square."

"What?"

"Up quite high. They will not be able to come down easily. I do not think they will escape before the police find them."

"With your magic? Or whatnot?"

"Yes. With the whatnot."

She crawls out of the corner and Wanda helps her to the couch. She stretches out and covers her eyes, exhausted. Wanda perches on the edge by her waist.

"What are you thinking, Loki?"

"How will I ever fit into this world? Even if I can do what I must to force this body into the right shape when it is needed, it is still not enough. I must find work, but I know nothing of what work even is in this realm. I must learn to navigate obtaining groceries, procuring or sewing clothing, and to determine if an encounter is safe or not. And I must some day discover how to meet people and make their acquaintence."

"What were your skills in Asgard?"

"Sorcery, knife fighting, flying a skiff, wreaking havoc in the palace, and despotically ruling things."

"Hmm...well we do not need any more despotic rulers at this time, but perhaps we can use your leadership skills and daring to find you work. Have you considered perhaps spending a day with Magda to see what it is she does?"

"Refugee work?"

"Yes. For the part of the day she is paid for. The last few hours before she comes home, she works at a transgender resource centre and shelter for homeless teenagers. Both jobs mean a great deal to her. Perhaps this sort of work would for you, too."

"You are far more hopeful than I am."

"You have had a terrible experience with just how awful people can be. You do not need to have hope. I can carry it for you until you can have me return it."

"That is a unique turn of phrase."

"It is Sokovian, translated, of course. We acknowledge despair and allow it shown. This country prefers to keep it hidden."

"Asgard also wishes it hidden."

Wanda rests her arm across Loki's stomach, "I do not think such a thing is healthy. Hidden things are feared and fear leads to anger and lashing out at those things feared..." Her hand drops down Loki's side and she gives her a squeeze.

"Wanda? Why is it that you and Magda touch so often? You both touch one another, and you touch me- even Thor. But Thor's friends do not touch at all unless utterly necessary." Wanda starts to draw her arm back, but Loki catches it, "I never said I wanted you to stop."

"It is a cultural difference. They grew up here, where most people survive a natural life, where children grow up. Sokovia has had many years where these things were not true. We learned to value being close to others. It was still this way when I was a child. There were bombs falling from the sky... So we touch. We greet with an embrace and kisses. We hold hands. We show affection as often as we can. Because we learned that one skipped opportunity could be a last chance we ever had. Do you not touch in Asgard?"

"Only when we are children. And Thor still does, as it is acceptable for brothers. But it falls off when we grow up. Friends stop snuggling by the fireside, falling asleep in a heap. No more holding hands racing down the halls. Or curling up together under blankets in a field without assumptions."

"Do you miss it?"

"I crave it. I do not know how others survive so well without such contact."

"I promise you Magda and I will always treat you as one of us. We will touch. We will hold hands, and we will kiss in greeting and kindness."

After a moment of quiet, Loki asks, "Will you stay in my guest room tonight?"

"Yes. I am supposed to meet with Natasha about a new mission in the morning, but she can wait."

"Thank you." She sits up and Wanda hugs her. She leans her head on her shoulder and cries. Wanda strokes her hair and whispers comforts in her ear in both English and Sokovian. When she has calmed, Wanda cooks and they spend a little time with her William Blake poetry. Wanda sees her to her bed and then retires to the guest room. She sets her alarm for a few hours out for a check in. Once Loki is asleep, she will rest more easily.