SHADOW OF DEATH

Chapter 21: The Tests

The door to the king's office opened and the General entered. She slapped her forearms across her chest in greeting before standing at attention before her monarch, her entire posture an example of unmoving discipline. T'Chaka set down his pen and the charter in his hands and he motioned for her to sit down. She did, though she kept her spear clenched in her fist, and she watched him without betraying a single flicker of emotion on her face.

"The council is displeased," T'Chaka said, in lieu of greeting. He leaned back in his chair and let his fingers fall onto the surface of his desk. With Okoye, it was better to charge through the open grasses than prowl through the treetops and Okoye would not hesitate to speak her mind in response. She was no politician, and this ensured she had as many enemies among the Wakandan elite as she did allies.

"Those hyenas are impossible to please," Okoye said with a scowl. "I take it they do not approve of Wakanda's efforts to bring stability to the rest of the globe."

"I did not expect them to. General, in this, they are right. What Gulu has asked of Wakanda goes against our Pillars. This is not the first time chaos and conflict has descended upon our neighbors. Why should we concern ourselves in their affairs this time? And at the request of an alien power who wishes to use our stability, our authority, our people to enforce their own version of 'peace' onto the rest of the world? I do not like it."

"We do not need to uphold that part of your agreement, my King. We do not need to send Wakandan emissaries at Gulu's request. I fear the suspicions that will be raised if any keen observers happen to notice Wakandans present in each of the fallen governments around the world. Where will Gulu be then? We will not be the field of battle for Asgard's conflicts and mistakes," Okoye said. Her lips pulled down into a grimace and her eyes shone with the zeal her words revealed.

"Yet, if we do not… how can we think we will be exempt? If all falls apart around us, how will our Pillars remain standing? General, I worry Wakanda's silence has drowned us in bloodguilt during the many conflicts we have watched from the safety of our barriers and the very stones condemn us for our lack of action."

"We have only ever fought from the shadows, at least during my days," Okoye said. "It is not our way to involve ourselves in the affairs of other countries."

"Where does wisdom end and fear begin? When is our lack of action a greater transgression than the threat of overstepping our authority?"

Okoye clicked her tongue under her breath. "Why, of all places, did the mgeni have to come to us?"

T'Chaka ran his hands through his beard and lost himself in the view outside his window. How many generations had his forebears struggled with just this same dilemma? Were the stakes as high as they were now or was this simply the challenges of the past repackaged on the stage of planets rather than terrestrial countries?

"I do not know, General. I do not know. I am old. My days are few. If this is a mistake and I bring all Wakanda down with me, it is my children who will bear the burden and not me. Perhaps my descendants will curse my name rather than remember it in honor, yet I cannot stand aside and do nothing this time."

"My King?"

"Send the emissaries. Perhaps, if they hide in the shadows as they have been trained to do, then their presence will remain undetected. At the first sign of trouble or detection, bring them home."

"Yes, my King," Okoye said with a salute. "And the council?"

T'Chaka sighed. "The council will not be happy. I will appoint a special force from within the council to work alongside your emissaries and oversee all that occurs on the ground. Ensure that reports are delivered daily and reviewed as soon as they are received."

Okoye nodded, stood in a lithe movement, and saluted one more time.

Shuri twisted the tiny screw counterclockwise. The half-assembled Panther mask was carefully clamped on the lab table and Shuri had enough extra screws in a small dish so she wouldn't lose them (again). She let out a curse when the door opened and startled her, making the screwdriver bounce out of her hand. She looked up to see Dr. Foster staring unseeingly across the room. Shuri took in the dark circles under her eyes, her mussed hair, and the extra-large cup of coffee she carried and bit back a chuckle. She placed her screwdriver down and turned her stool around to face her companion.

"How many hours did you sleep last night?" Shuri asked.

Jane responded with a grunt and sank down onto a stool. She held her cup to her chest as if it were a life preserver instead of a beverage. She stared down into the steam and inhaled deeply with her eyes closed. Shuri checked the time on her computer.

Thirty minutes.

It would be another thirty minutes before Jane would be cogent enough to respond with words instead of incoherent mumbles.

Shuri picked up her screwdriver again, readjusted her goggles, and focused her attention back on the mask. After three months of nearly constant interaction, the pair was now familiar with each other's habits and idiosyncrasies. Shuri hated it when Jane touched her tools without asking and Jane could not manage social interactions within a half hour of waking up. Shuri preferred complete silence when she worked, and Jane talked to herself incessantly. Overall, she couldn't complain. Jane proved to be the best lab partner she had ever had (and Jane liked her lab), so they both adjusted and worked around each other's preferences and weaknesses and habits.

Shuri grew so engrossed with her work that she nearly forgot to watch the time. She didn't need to. As if prompted by an alarm, exactly thirty-two minutes later, Jane's eyes left her now empty cup of coffee and sought out Shuri. She gave a long yawn, stretched, and fumbled with her knapsack. She placed the Kree transponder on the table with a slight bang and gave a dramatic groan.

"Ugh! Shuri, I've gone over Loki's schematics at least a dozen times and I've picked this thing apart in every way I can. I just can't figure it out," Jane said in exasperation.

"Dr. Foster, are you referring to the device you were expressly forbidden from tampering with?" Shuri asked. Shuri forcibly maintained her composure and gave what she hoped was a very serious and empathetic expression (though she suspected it looked more like she bit into a raw mango).

"Shut it, Shuri. You left it out for me on purpose. Don't pretend to be innocent in this," Jane said. "You knew I wouldn't be able to resist."

"I have no idea what you mean," Shuri said, giving Jane a wide-eyed and full-dimpled smile. "Why would I do such a thing?"

"Just to exasperate me."

"Mimi? I would never! Tell me, daktari, what is troubling you so much?"

"You know exactly what. I need to know what that button does. Why is it so dangerous? I can't figure it out and it's driving me crazy!" Jane said. She pulled out some of Loki's drawings and spread them out on the table in front of her. She rubbed at her temples with her hands and stared in front of her with slightly glazed eyes.

"Umelala? Did you sleep at all?" Shuri asked.

"No! Every time I tried, I kept running over the schematics again in my head and thinking about how important that button must be and then I got up again."

"Keep at it, daktari. I'm sure with a few more nights working on it, you will figure it out," Shuri said as she bit back a chuckle.

The look of exasperation that crossed Jane's face proved Shuri's undoing and she could contain herself no longer. She laughed so hard she snorted and leaned against the countertop to keep from falling over.

"What aren't you telling me?" Jane asked, narrowing her eyes and pursing her lips.

"Hakuna, daktari."

"Come on," Jane pleaded again.

"I am disappointed. I had high hopes you were stronger than this," Shuri said, letting go of all pretenses. "I now owe Prince Loki a full day of computer hacking into government databases at his direction. You really need to exercise your self-control."

"You…made….a….bet," Jane said, her eyes narrowing even further as she emphasized each word.

"Indio."

"You…made…a…bet," Jane said again.

"He bet you would not sleep at all and I bet you would get at least an hour," Shuri said. "He proved to anticipate your reaction a little better than me."

Jane stared at the schematics again and then her head shot up as pieces clicked together in her brain. "It isn't dangerous, is it? He said that on purpose just to mess with me."

"Of course."

"You already know what that button does, don't you?" Jane said, her voice now flat.

Shuri descended into giggles and covered her mouth with her hand. "Yake kwa sauti," she managed to squeak out in between breaths.

Jane groaned and lay her head back on the table. "English, Shuri. What did you just say?"

"Pole, daktari, siwezi kutafsiri," Shuri said with another grin. "If I tell you what the button means, I will lose our second wager."

"I hate you….and if I had slept I might have a really apt insult for both you and your accomplice."

"Go to sleep, Jane," Shuri said. "Come back and insult me properly when you can think again."

For a moment, Shuri thought Jane was going to let her stubbornness win out and stay to work. Then her shoulders slumped and she rose with an air of resignation. She stumbled towards the door when she suddenly stopped and turned around, eyes wide.

"It was him!" she said. "That whole time, he was there playing tricks on me! The birds…the shoes…the toaster…the ice…the delivery truck driver…that was all him! Oh my stars! Does he have anything more important to do than to mess with my head? Seriously, who does that?"

"Loki, known to the early Germanic peoples of northern Europe as their 'God of Mischief'," Shuri replied, as if a narrator on a documentary. All the while, she wished Jane were awake enough to explain what occurred with her toaster. She made a mental note to inquire into it later.

"Not helpful. This is unsettlingly creepy," Jane said.

Shuri shrugged and bit back her reply. She could understand Loki's perspective, maybe a bit. Flustering Jane proved almost as entertaining as embarrassing T'Challa. It was too, too easy. If she were in Loki's position, stalking Jane to play tricks on her did sound like a better way to spend his time than leading alien invasions across Earth. She doubted Jane would appreciate that fact so she swallowed her saliva and did not speak it out loud.

She thought back to the semester she spent studying in Paris. It was so cold and everything was so covered in cobblestones and so very French. When T'Challa told her of an acquaintance of his staying on the outskirts of the city, she sought him out immediately. If she had met the man in Wakanda, she would have ignored him completely. He proved a droll companion with very little about him to be of interest. However, he knew enough of T'Challa to make her feel somehow connected to home, a little less alone, a little less homesick. Despite whatever conflicts the mgeni had with his home and his family, he was still far, far from home. How many of the billions living on Earth had firsthand knowledge of his brother other than Jane?

"Stop thinking, Jane," Shuri said, when she noticed her friend still had not moved. "Tutaonana baadaye. I will see you later. Goodbye."

"Yeah. Good idea," Jane said with another yawn. "I'm gonna figure it out, you know."

"Oh, I'm counting on it," Shuri said. She hoped Jane would figure it out soon. She planned to win their bet this time.

In between visits to the medical center and quick trips to Moscow, Johannesburg, and Mexico City, Loki struggled to make time to spend in the lab. Jane's work progressed, but it still required materials that he doubted he could obtain on Midgard before the Bifrost could be fully operational. Her theoretical application far outweighed her practical application and it would take time before that gap could be bridged.

Shuri called him to the lab early the morning he returned to Wakanda. In the bright lights of the white and silver room, she lay the transmitter onto a table and gave him a wide grin. Large goggles made her small face appear even smaller and more childlike than usual and her hands clapped in anticipation. The strength of her presence and her sharp wit made him forget how very young she still was.

"It's ready," she said. "At least I think it is. Please will you check it over and let me know if it is complete?"

He nodded and began to investigate the newly installed wires. While he did, she picked up a piece of her brother's armor and began to fiddle with it. At the push of a button, streams of energy lit up within and she frowned. Loki had been surprised to find it was the princess who made most of the armor and weapons for the crowned prince.

"You are close with your brother?" he asked, calling her attention back to him. She placed down her tool and smiled fondly.

"Yes. Despite our difference in age, we have always been close."

"Princess, are you next in line for the throne?" Loki asked, finally voicing the question he had long wondered but had failed to ask.

"Nini?" she asked before she let it process. "I suppose you could say that…but not really. Our line of succession is based partially on blood relation to the former monarch but also based on the ability to defeat any rival claims in one-on-one combat."

"The Black Panther must easily defeat all foes," he remarked.

"Not necessarily. He can't be claimed a victor if he has such an advantage. The powers of the Black Panther are first stripped away and then he must fight without powers and without weapons. Only if he is victorious can he maintain his claim to the kingship and become the next Black Panther.

"I may serve my people as queen, but only if emergency protocols are established during a time of war or instability. I can also serve my people as queen if I defeat all others who lay a claim to the throne. Wakanda has seen a few queens during our long history, but very few. Some were daughters or sisters of kings who held blood ties to the throne. Some were former Dora Milaje who were appointed by elders of their tribes as possible rivals. They either achieved their positions through political maneuvering, popularity, and a lack of competition or because they were fierce warriors who could defeat rivals without weapons. I am not so fierce a warrior nor am I so skilled in diplomacy. In truth, I would make a very poor queen."

"Do you not wish to preserve your claim?" he asked.

She shrugged. "I can defend myself if necessary, but I am not a warrior and have no desire to be one. I do not enjoy politics. Even if I were the firstborn, I would still wish T'Challa be king. I am not suited to it. I am happier supporting my brother and making sure his reign will be strong and successful than in ensuring my own. T'Challa needs me and I need him and we are both happier as we are.

"T'Challa used to tease me and say I am like the ant and he is like the mgunga tree. The mgunga, it shelters and feeds the ants. The ants, they act as mighty little defenders, protecting the tree from animals even as large as giraffes and elephants. Even though the tree is large and strong, it relies on its tiny inhabitants for assistance. They are stronger together. T'Challa may say I am as tiny as an ant and just as irritating, and I may say he is as dense as a tree and as prickly as the thorns of the mgunga, but we still need each other as we are."

Loki nodded, lost in thought.

"Were you close with your brother?" Shuri asked.

Loki pursed his lips slightly and tapped his fingers against his chin. "As children, yes. When we came of age, less so. We were close in age and we were raised to compete more than to complement. In competition, there can be only one who proves victorious and the other is left in the shadows."

Shuri cocked her head to one side and looked at him inquisitively. "You wished to be king?"

Loki gave a sardonic laugh. "I was king. I ruled all the realms for a mere handful of days. But, nay, I never wished to ascend to the throne. I merely wished to be recognized as the equal of my brother. That has proved as vain a quest as that of protecting Midgard."

"How could you ever be your brother's equal and he yours?" Shuri asked, her eyes squinting beneath her goggles. "You are not the same. Is the cheetah the equal of the crocodile? They are both fierce predators, but one will fare better on land than water. I happen to know I am a crocodile and will stay in the Nile instead of chasing a gazelle through the savanna. If you prefer to be a cheetah, do you simply paint spots onto your scales?"

"It hardly matters now," Loki replied, his tone equal measures irritation and anger. "Thor is gone."

Shuri opened her mouth and seemed to think the better of it and closed it again. Then, the entire front panel of the transmitter in his hand lit up in different colors and a light beeping sound emanated from within.

"You have my thanks, princess," Loki said, smiling now in earnest. "You have achieved and admirable feat in repairing this device."

"Uko tayari? Are you ready to test it?" Shuri said. She stared at the panel over his shoulder and did not bother to hide her excitement.

"I dare not test it within Wakanda," he said. He still felt unsettled over the mysterious origins of the transmitter. It could be a trap or a way of his enemies discovering his whereabouts. He would test it during his next visit to New York. An area such as that could hardly receive additional damage. It would take time to calibrate the device in tandem with his magic to see if he could reach his desired destination. Infinity Gems were not spoken of lightly or across open lines of communication…especially when such Gems were sought by the Mad Titan. He would need to plan this carefully.

"Why not?" Shuri asked, her calculating gaze fixed on him. "After all we've put into it, we need to see the fruit of our labors! Or is this another one of your schemes to disturb Jane?"

"Ah, as tempting as the prospect is, not this time," he said with a slight smirk. "I do not wish to test it within Wakanda for three reasons: First, I do not know how your shielding mechanism will interact with the signal from the transmitter. Secondly, I do not wish anyone I speak with on the other side to be able to trace my whereabouts to Wakanda. Thirdly, it may require magic to extend its reach beyond the Nine and I am still bound within your borders."

"Aye, bwana. Those reasons I can accept, but I would not tell Jane about the test, if I were you. If you do, you will find she will follow you as closely as Goose to wherever you go to."

"Hmmm, would you care to place another wager on that?" he asked with a mischievous grin and a sideways glance.

"What do you have in mind?"

Jane trapped him in the hallway walking towards his chambers. He felt ill-disposed to be social or patient after a full three days pretending to be Thor, dealing with inept civil servants, and a particularly grueling United Nations meeting. He could have managed a friendly visit about his travels or a discussion of the ethnobotany on Alfheim or a discussion on the best way to magically induce sleep on particularly long-winded politicians, but in character with Jane, she came to scold him.

"Where have you been? You disappear for days," Jane demanded. Loki refused to answer and simply arched one eyebrow in response. "Don't give me that look. Come on, I need to know."

"Tell me, Dr. Foster, how many days did it take for you to push the button I informed you was dangerous?" he asked, avoiding her question completely.

Jane's eyes flashed and she crossed her arms over her chest so she could glare at him properly. "You! I can't believe you! It was the volume button! What's so dangerous about that?"

"Yet, if it had been the spark to detonate an explosive device, you still would insist on pressing it, simply to see what it does," he said with casual nonchalance.

"I would not…ok…maybe I would. That's besides the point. You are deflecting. You left for days this week. Then you disappear. Almost every Sunday. Shuri said you go to New York to the bomb sight. Why?"

"Shuri said…," Loki repeated with a hint of anger in his voice and Jane suddenly wished she had kept that piece of information to herself. "How, pray tell, does Princess Shuri come across such information?"

"I dunno," Jane said with a shrug. "She's Shuri. She pretty much knows everything."

"Including my whereabouts when I wish them unknown."

"I guess. Come on, why do you go there?"

"There are some things I wish not to speak of."

"It must not be too sinister cause it's not like you can destroy an area that's already bombed."

"Really, Lady Jane? Do you think I have little else to occupy myself with other than the continued conquest of Midgard?"

"Seems your style. You know-like Pinky and the Brain-'What shall we do today? I know! Take over the world!' You seem like the Brain type."

"You failed in coherency after your first utterance."

"Can I come next time?" she said.

"Absolutely not."

"Why not?"

"First of all, because your curiosity will be the death of you. Secondly, because I do not wish for your company. Thirdly, because you are incapable of following even the most basic of instructions."

Jane gave him an offended look and her cheeks grew red with her frustration. Then she stared at the floor for a moment and glanced back at him with curiosity burning behind her brown eyes.

"No, Dr. Foster. Whatever question you are about to ask, the answer is no," Loki said, forcing himself to remain impassive despite the urge to chuckle at her obvious frustration.

"You don't even know what I am going to ask!" She said with a huff.

"It is irrelevant. The answer is still no. I bid you good-day, Lady Jane," he said with a slight nod of his head. He retreated to his chambers before she could follow after him with another question.

It took nineteen and a half hours to send the signal. While Shuri had masterfully repaired the Kree device, the distance he required the device to operate across proved exponentially greater than what the device was initially created for. The welcomed exertion of his magic quickly became a grueling exercise in longevity as the hours stretched on. The late-night barrage of frigid wind and snow flurries did not improve his mood. He waited another twenty hours to see if he would receive a response to his coded message. When no response came, he decided he had tarried too long and it was time to take his leave.

It was now Sunday. Sundays were for him to do as he pleased.

He found Mrs. Johnson wearing a long-sleeved orange sweater and up to her elbows in dirt. Safe within the greenhouse, encased in magic and warmth, her flowers flourished and the snow was kept far outside. The air around her was saturated with the scent of roses, orchids, and freesia. She lifted up a pot of lilies as he entered and waved at him with her shovel.

"Lucas! There you are! I was beginning to wonder! Come over here and take a seat. I have another plant for you today," she said, cheerful effervescence emanating from her in waves.

He sat on the lush cushions of the new wicker rocker and took hold of the potted plant she handed him. Soon his lap was filled with a plate of cold churros, which he quickly warmed, and Mrs. Johnson's mobile phone displayed the latest photographs of the newest additions to her growing family. She only teared up once and even then, it was over her pride in how well José performed in his classes. Her mood was contagious and he let himself forget everything else except Mrs. Johnson's latest adventures in gardening and cooking. Nearly two hours passed before Mrs. Johnson's attention turned away away from Loki's story to two figures standing outside the greenhouse waving at her through the window.

"Who is this?" Mrs. Johnson asked. "Are these friends of yours?"

Loki inwardly groaned. Before he could answer, Mrs. Johnson opened the greenhouse door and welcomed in Shuri and Jane. Goose lay comfortably nestled against the chest of Jane's down jacket and held close in her arms with a loud purr.

"Hey!" Jane said. "We saw you here and thought we'd come say, 'hi!'"

"Hi, I'm Jane," she said, turning to his companion. She let Goose down from her arms and stuck out her hand in that strange Midgardian introduction (which Shuri had assured him was not shared across all Midgard, but only certain regions).

"I'm Shuri," came the princess's similarly followed introduction.

"We are friends of Lo…" Jane began, before Loki interjected.

"Mine, they are friends of mine," he said with what he hoped would be a meaningful glance to Jane.

"Well, any friend of Lucas is a friend of mine!" Mrs. Johnson said with her glowing, welcoming smile. "I'm Sandra Johnson. Come on in and escape the cold! Here, I'm afraid I only have three good seats in here. Let me pull up another from outside."

"You cheated. This does not count," Loki whispered to Shuri in a voice so low the others could not hear.

"You did not specify in our terms," she replied and winked. "I believe I have won." She turned to take her seat beside him and ignored his glare. She pulled off the top layers of clothes with a contented sigh and set them on her lap. Then she scanned the many displays of flowers overflowing from every pot in the greenhouse.

"What a lovely garden you have here," Jane said. "It's so vibrant!"

"Isn't it?" Mrs. Johnson beamed. She pulled over the slightly crooked stool and sat on it, wobbling from side-to-side at the movement. "This would be nothing but bare, winterized earth if it wasn't for Lucas here. It's been the coldest March I can remember, but here we are, surrounded by flowers. He built me this greenhouse himself and helped me plant half the plants."

"Did he now? I didn't know you had a green thumb," Jane said, giving Loki a curious stare. Goose jumped from her lap and wandered through the foliage, happily chewing on leaves and peeking into empty flower pots. Loki stared at Jane and then at his thumb. He did not understand why she thought his thumb was green. He sighed. His day was not improving.

"Tell me about you two ladies - how do you all know each other?" Mrs. Johnson asked.

"Work colleagues," Loki interjected before they could answer again. "We've worked together on that research project I've been spending so much time on."

"How nice! I love hearing about Lucas' work," Mrs. Johnson said. "Now I have faces and names to go with his stories."

"He tells stories about us?" Jane asked, not bothering to hide her interest.

"I am most curious what brings you both to this side of town?" Loki asked the uninvited guests. "You shouldn't be anywhere close to here today."

"Ah, yes," Shuri said with a wink to Jane. "We decided to visit New York today and while we were here, we came across your cat. We followed your cat and it led us here."

Loki cursed under his breath as the pieces clicked together in his head. He feigned a smile again so as to not give Mrs. Johnson the wrong impression. He would find some way to lock Goose in a dimensional pocket or a vibranium cage or some elvish animal trap in order to stop the insufferable creature from trailing him further.

"It is a happy surprise that we come upon you today, Mrs. Johnson," Shuri said. "Tell me, how do you know our friend, Lucas, here?"

"Ah yes, he's been such a dear to me ever since, well, just after the, you know," she said and gestured to the skeletal buildings surrounding them. "This is where I lived before and, well, to make a long story short, we crossed paths one day. We found we both have lost people we loved and have needed to make new families. So, we have Sunday dinners here a few times a month. A few months ago, he joined our family for the holidays. I, uh," and here Mrs. Johnson's eyes welled up with tears. "To be honest, he's been a light spot in a lot of dark days for me. These Sunday dinners and our time in the garden have gotten me out of bed more times than I can count. So, here we are now, learning to bloom where we are planted and make the best of whatever circumstances we find ourselves in." She leaned over so she could pat Loki's hand and then she pulled out her handkerchief to dab at her eyes.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Shuri quietly added.

Mrs. Johnson gave her a light smile and placed her hand on Shuri's arm. "Me too," she said. "Me too. Now, just before you two ladies came, Lucas here was telling me a rousing story about a hunting trip he went on with his brother and father as a child. Continue on, dearie, I haven't laughed that hard since your stories on Christmas."

Loki's eyes glistened with a spark neither of his companions had ever seen. He kissed Mrs. Johnson's hand and dove back into his story. Soon, all three women were in stitches, laughing so hard that tears filled their eyes... the happy kind now and not those borne of sadness.

"It is time for me to go," Loki said as the afternoon began to wane and a bitterly cold wind whipped around outside the greenhouse.

"Take some roses for your brother," Mrs. Johnson said and picked up her clippers. "Your mother would wish it and we have so many this week. Come, ladies. You must see these roses. They came from his mother's garden and I've never seen such beautiful roses!"

Mrs. Johnson gave each of the women a perfect Asgardian rose, a warm hug and a wish to see them again soon. Then she gave Loki a kiss on the cheek.

"You, dearie, smile more. I can tell you are not smiling enough and you need to get out more. Come back again soon," she said. "Next time, I'll bring all the children and we can celebrate the miraculous way our little family has grown!"

"I would be delighted, Mrs. Johnson," Loki said. "Send José my greetings until then."

"I will. He will be so disappointed he missed you."

Jane and Shuri left the greenhouse after Loki and they followed him through the grey, icy streets of the broken city. As they walked around another corner, they heard the tell-tale jingle of Goose's bell and the Flerkin joined them, trailing a few steps behind them in the snow.

Jane broke the muffled quiet of their footsteps with an accusing glare and a shout at Loki.

"What the hell was that?" she asked.

"Was what?" Loki replied.

"That," Jane said, waving her mittened hand in the air. "Why her? What are you trying to pull on her?"

Loki raised one eyebrow and quickened his steps so Jane had to run to keep up. She pulled her scarf closer around her neck in a fruitless effort to keep out the cold. Shuri increased her pace in order to take Jane's arm in her own and pull her back slightly.

"Jane, shhh," she whispered, though Loki could still hear.

"No! I want answers."

"It is not the time or place," Shuri said, lowering her voice even more.

She acquiesced to Shuri's command to keep her tongue and the two women fell into step together behind the Asgardian prince. The four companions completed their walk without further attempts at conversation. The blanket of snow only made the sound of silence more deafening. As they walked block-by-block, the buildings seemed to shrink in size until they nearly evaporated into the flattened earth below. There, powdered with snow, grew a mound the size of a small house made entirely of pictures, signs, cards, gifts, and flowers. Some grew out of the snow while others lay on top, freshly placed that day by mourners.

Loki walked up to it and placed an armful of roses nearby what Jane and Shuri could see was a line of similar bouquets. Row after row of roses in different stages of decay peeked through the snow. Loki stood in silence for five minutes, ignoring all around him, before he turned to walk past the women. Then, he vanished.

"Did he just disappear?" Jane asked, turning around in a circle looking for him.

"Ndio."

"How did he do that?"

"Sijui. I think it is one of the sides of Loki we miss when his magic is bound."

"I can't say I'm all that sad about that," Jane said. "I mean, if he can sneak up on us without magic, imagine all the heart attacks he could give us with this vanishing act business."

"Hmmm, good point. Still, I will look forward to studying him in my lab. That does not sound quite the way I mean it to. I think you see my meaning."

"Yeah, I got it. But Shuri, I don't think there's much you don't want to study in your lab."

"Not true. I do not wish to study cockroaches. Those will make me scream like a rabbit when I find them under the sink."

"Can't say that I blame you for that."

The pair fell silent the farther they walked. The rows of memorials stretched on in endless trails around them. They paused to read names and look at pictures until tears trailed down both of their cheeks and froze on their scarves.

"It was really terrible," Jane finally said. "All this."

"It was a tragedy," Shuri said. "The shockwaves will be felt for generations."

They returned to the point they started from and stared at the line of dried roses.

"He comes here nearly every Sunday," Shuri said in a whisper. "I think he's come here every Sunday for a very long time."

"You think he regrets it?"

"I think he loved his brother very much."

"But he, ugh, I just don't understand him."

"I do not know if he even understands himself," Shuri said with a pensive glance towards where the city began to grow again. "I have been developing a theory about this for some time now."

"You have a developing theory about everything."

Shuri shrugged. "It's true. This one is harder to test in my lab, though. You see, some people are like avocados. They have a very thin skin and it is easy to tell what they have on the inside. Some are soft and some are hard, but they let everyone see what is there. Other people, they are a bit more like coconuts. They protect themselves with a thick hard shell and very few people ever get into the center to see what's there. Is it soft or hard? Sweet or milky? Few will ever find out, but once you are in, you are in.

"Prince Loki, I suspect, does not let very many people see what is within his coconut shell. Today, we have seen another side of Loki that we had not seen before. We trespassed into a space I think he keeps very sacred and we need to be careful with what we have seen."

"What have we seen today? Him pretending to be someone he is not and deceiving a sweet woman that is grieving? I have seen quite enough of that side of Loki," Jane said. She kicked her shoe into the snow and made a trail of dirt in the white powder.

Shuri sighed. "Jane, you are right to be angry about many things. But now, you are too too literal. Read the actions and not the words. If he can place the worst parts of himself on display first, he can sift through those who will reject him before he is invested. Like poking a snake with a stick, he wants to see if we will snap at him before he allows us to see below his mask. When he pokes you, your first instinct is to lunge and sink in your teeth."

"But he…"Jane began. She stopped when Shuri placed her hand over her mouth.

"No, Jane…" Shuri began, then she stopped and looked around them. They were the only living beings within sight. It was growing close to twilight and Shuri shivered. "Let us continue this conversation some other time. I do not want to find out what this deserted city will look like after dark."

Jane nodded her head. She had no desire to see the memorial or the fragmented city in the dark any more than Shuri. They took each other's arms and began to walk back to where they left the camouflaged jet. Yet Shuri kept pausing to look over her shoulder.

"Jane," she whispered. "I do not like this. I feel as though we are being watched. I cannot see anyone, but I think we should walk a little bit faster."

Jane's eyes grew wide and she sped up to match Shuri's pace. They nearly reached the clearing where they landed the jet when they heard the cocking of a gun.

"If you wish to live, you will not move," came a deep voice from the shadows.

The pair stopped and found themselves staring into the barrels of three guns held by three black-clad, masked figures with eyes glowing an unnaturally bright shade of blue.

Notes:

Mgunga: whistling thorn acacia tree

Translations:

Daktari: doctor

Mimi: me

Hakuna: nothing

Umelala: have you slept?

Yake kwa sauti: It's for the volume/sound.

"Pole, daktari, siwezi kutafsiri: sorry doctor, I am unable to translate.

Tutaonana baadaye: see you later

Uko tayari: are you ready?

Bwana: sir

indio: yes

sijui: I don't know.