This chapter focuses on the goose incident three chapters back. A coincidence is that in the story, it happened a month ago which was also when that chapter was published.

Year Two: In Case of Emergency

Two Years Ago - Barton Household - 15:05 PM

Merida drags her last bag to the door, stopping to take a seat on it. She rests for a few seconds, putting her feet on top of another bag as she looks at her packed belongings. Will she really need all this stuff in The Academy? Likely not, but it's good to be prepared since she'll have no money nor interest in roaming around New Jersey. She's been there enough before and will now live there for the next four years.

As she gets up to continue getting her bags, she hears a knock on the door. Merida walks over and opens it, surprised to see him at the door but she smiles.

"I see you're getting ready," he says, stepping inside and over her bags.

"Mom made me," Merida responds, closing the door. "So, what's up?"

"I wanted to give you this before you go." He hands her a slip of paper.

Merida takes it, opening to look at it. "I already have your phone number."

"That is your break glass in case of emergency card. Now, you might have to use it. I won't be there but you will."

Merida's breath hitches, having not seen that coming. She didn't think moving out and going to the Academy would hand her this much responsibility already, and she hasn't officially left yet. Could she even handle it? There's a difference between having this number given to her in physical form and having this face-to-face conversation compared to a text or her going at it on free will. This gesture is him putting his trust, his kids, in her hands.

Merida nods, folding up the sheet before looking up at him. "Of course, dear godfather."

-o-

Present Day - Hudson Residence - 15:37 PM

Merida knocks on his dorm room's door, hoping that Xavier's there. She waits, wondering if she should leave before being seen standing here for too long. This is awkward. Merida knows his schedule so he isn't in class. She didn't see him in the gym or the cafeteria so, knowing him, he has to be in his dorm room.

"Fuck this…" Merida says.

She's about to leave but the door opens and Xavier pokes his head out. Merida sighs relieved. If it was Ashton, she would've screamed.

"What are you doing here?" Xavier asks.

Merida freezes for a moment before walking inside his room. Xavier closes the door behind her. What was she doing here? She could've called him and avoided searching for him across campus, but she couldn't. Ever since there was a goose in this room, she couldn't help but this that they all miss Apollo and Britney but it hit Xavier harder than the rest of them. Xavier misses Apollo but he really misses Britney.

This conversation had to be done in person.

"Okay…" Merida mutters, rubbing her hands together with her sleeves bunched in her palms. "I came to apologize for what I said during the whole goose thing."

Xavier puts his hands in his back pocket, looking down for a moment before meeting her eyes again. "That was over a month ago."

Way to make her look bad. "Yeah, well, I've been thinking about it for a month."

"I forgot you said that."

"You know what, Xavier? Let me do this."

Xavier smiles, getting a laugh out of watching Merida attempt an apology. He sighs, opening his arms to give her the floor as he takes a seat on the edge of his desk. He looks at her with a smile, waiting for her to say something that isn't like sinking in quicksand, but she just stands there. She resembles a child waiting for their parents to finish up at the grocery store.

And Merida just stands there. She should've made this a phone call.

Merida brings a sleeved hand to her face. "Hey, why do people call it falling in love?"

Xavier hesitates, looking at her as if she's serious and she is. Weird. "Because falling hurts?"

Merida points at him. "Or because you're supposed to get back up again." She rolls up her sleeves. "I'm not saying move on because I would never do that to you or Britney. I always believed that people who get into relationships after a breakup are some of the weakest people because they can't handle life alone and need someone in order to function."

"What's your point?"

"I don't know. What's yours?"

Xavier shrugs. "I still love her, okay?"

"I know."

Xavier rubs his eyes with the heel of his hand and it strikes Merida how sad this is: seeing Xavier cry the day they left made her cry as well. And she never cries but that image of Xavier losing it will forever be burned in her mind. Then it was a domino effect for everyone else.

Merida attempts a smile. "You could've pulled a Stark-Banner and proposed to Britney."

Xavier copies her smile, thinking about that for a moment. "If only I could've…"

"They'll both come back, Xavier. We're not done growing up yet. That's something we've always done together."

Xavier nods. "It is, isn't it?"

"Yeah…"

For a moment, it's silent, but then Xavier stands up again.

"You still haven't apologized," Xavier says.

Merida glares at him, making him laugh. "Fuck you."

-o-

Merida walks out of Xavier's dorm. She thinks she did well with her version of an apology but there's no denying that he's hurt for reasons beyond her, beyond almost anyone, really. At least she tried. That's probably the most she's ever done.

Merida approaches the elevator and the doors open without her calling it. Perfect timing. She looks ahead and sees Ashton stepping out. Perfect timing again and she won't scream. Instead, she grabs his forearm and drags him out, stopping at the corner of their floor's common area. Nobody else is around and he doesn't look the least bit fazed by this.

"Xavier's in bad shape," Merida tells him. "You've probably noticed but I might have made it worse by attempting to apologize. Anyways, take this."

Merida pulls out her wallet from her jacket pocket. She opens it and pulls out a folded sheet of paper from one of the pockets. Merida hands it to Ashton and he opens it to see a phone number. He could guess that she wants him to call it.

"Who is this?" Ashton says, taking his phone out.

"Call it," Merida says urgently. "Say that Xavier needs a call."

Ashton is hesitant. He got a strange number and is ordered to call it. In what world is this normal? His, apparently.

"Why don't you do it yourself?" Ashton asks her.

"It's one of my godfather cards," Merida responds. "I'd call it myself but then I'd have to own up to something."

"That was a month ago."

"Yes, but don't tell Xavier this. Britney's demon has been poking me with a stick for a month."

"Yikes…" Ashton mutters before starting to dial the number.

Merida smiles, leaning against the wall. "I'll be here while you talk."

-o-

Later, Xavier looks up from a textbook on aviation flight patterns he's supposed to be reading. He made it through the whole chapter but when he reached the now test yourself section, he realized he had no idea what he read. His mind has been reading the words, but he really processed Merida's. It wasn't the quicksand words because that whole day was too chaotic for him to remember. The goose haunts him but that's not important.

He can't deny that missing Apollo and Britney, mostly Britney (sorry Apollo), made him a bit off his game. He can try to move on but he doesn't want to. It's not like he wants to mope around all day but he doesn't want to go date. At least, not until he sees her again. Now that she and, this time including Apollo, didn't come back after a year like they said, he can't help but wonder why. They're all wondering but he believes it haunts him the most.

Maybe something happened on Asgard. Maybe they're in the middle of their mission and couldn't stop? Maybe they lost track of time. Maybe Asgard's more fascinating than Midgard. Even he can say it is and he's never been there. So could he blame them for staying?

His phone rings, distracting him even more. Xavier picks it up and sees that it's his dad.

"Hey," Xavier says. "How -?"

Steve: I know it's going to be hard for you.

Xavier pauses. He didn't expect this call to go there. His parents are straightforward about different things. His mother was more about how life works and his father about emotions and feelings. It's how they worked as parents.

"I'm guessing Merida called you," Xavier says.

Steve: She made your roommate call me but that's besides the point.

"Then what's the point?"

Steve: I'm not saying that you should move on from Britney but you should at least put her on the back burner.

Xavier takes a second before responding because he knows that if he talks, a hint of a choking cry will come out. His dad would hear it, but he knows that his dad will sense it by Xavier's silence.

"You're not going to tell me that I can do better," Xavier suggests. He thinks back to the time when his parents were iffy on Britney when she was revealed to be Loki's daughter. They never minded her, but he can't help himself. Now his father is the silent one.

Steve: You had the most powerful sorceress in all the realms with the biggest, bravest, and scariest heart I've ever seen on someone so young. Take that as you will.

Xavier smiles to himself. "I will."