Homecoming
Evie spent a dull week in the hospital. The only thing that kept her entertained were the stories that her dad and uncle would tell her about her grandparents and growing up in Asgard. Also, Loki would perform magic for her when the stories weren't enough. Every day the nurse would come in and give her yucky medication, and the doctor would come in and tell her daddy that she was doing better.
On Friday, the doctor finally came in with the social worker and said that Evie could go home, “And where will Evelyn be staying, Mr. Odinson?” The social worker asked.
“We will be staying in New York at the Avengers' Tower.”
She nodded and smiled at Thor, “I had a feeling you would say that so I expedited a passport for Evelyn so that she may travel to the United States without any problems.”
Thor didn't quite understand what that was for, but Coulson thanked the social worker for him. He would explain to him later what that was for, though Evie didn't need it since they would be flying in the QuinJet and would bypass customs.
Now that the doctor discharged Evie, the social worker had brought a change of clothes for Evie. She brought her a pair of jeans, a pretty blue blouse and a pair of sneakers, along with underclothes. Evie got up from bed, went to the bathroom, took a shower, and changed.
When Evie came out of the bathroom, she looked at Thor expectantly, “How do I look, Daddy?”
“Beautiful, my princess. Would you like me to braid your hair?”
“You know how to braid hair?”
Loki laughed, “Of course he does; Thor enjoys braiding his own hair.”
Thor glared at Loki while Evie giggled. Coulson stood in the corner, trying not to laugh.
“Yes, Daddy, will you braid my hair?”
“Of course, Evie.”
Thor had Evie sit down on the bed, and he quickly brushed her hair, making sure her blonde hair was nice and smooth then began to braid it into a French braid. When he was finished, Evie went to the bathroom to look; she squealed when she saw it, “I love it, Daddy, thank you.”
“You are very welcome.”
“Can we go now, Phil,” Evie asked.
“We sure can, Evie. The papers have all been signed, you've been checking out, and a car is waiting for us downstairs.”
Thor smiled at his daughter and offered his hand. Evie happily took his hand, and they left the hospital room with Loki and Coulson following behind. Evie made sure to say goodbye to all the nurses that had helped her and to the doctor, then they went downstairs and got into the SUV that was waiting for them to take them to a private airstrip where the Quinjet was waiting for them.
Meanwhile in New York, Tony had informed the rest of the Avengers about Thor's little lightning bug, “How does Thor have a kid,” Steve asked.
“Do I have to explain that to you, Steve,” Clint asked.
Steve blushed, “I know how Thor has a kid what I meant was-”
“We know what you meant, Steve,” Natasha said, “I don't think that matters. I think what does matter is that we don't overwhelm her and scare her.”
“How can we scare her with an uncle like Loki,” Tony asked.
“Tony, from what you told us she hasn't had the best life until now, she's probably going to be a little shy around a bunch of adults,” Bruce pointed out.
“Yeah, I guess you're right. Okay, then no crowding the kid, you guys.” Tony said.
Natasha had to fight the urge to roll her eyes; she only looked over at Clint, who did roll his eyes, “Whatever you say, Stark.”
“Okay, the Quinjet is going to be landing in three hours. Let's get this place decorated for Evie's homecoming,” Tony instructed.
“We're throwing her a homecoming party,” Steve asked.
“Of course, I want the little lightning bug to feel welcomed,” Tony told Steve.
“Oh, Tony, that's so sweet,” Pepper said and kissed Tony's cheek.
“Besides, it's been two weeks since we've had a party, we're due.”
Pepper smacked Tony in the back of the head, “What? It's true.”
While the Avengers are decorating the Tower, Coulson, Thor, Evie, and Loki and getting into the Quinjet preparing to take off, Thor picks up Evie and puts her in her seat and buckles her seatbelt, then he and Loki sit on either side of her. Coulson goes up front and sits in the co-pilot seat. He turns around and smiles at Evie, “Have you ever flown before, Evie?”
“No, Phil, I haven't.”
“Okay, this is going to feel a little strange, you might feel a little tickle in your stomach, that's normal, okay?”
Evie nods.
Coulson gives the pilot the signal, and he begins the preparations to leave. It doesn't take long for the Quinjet to take off, once in the air, the pilot sets the course for New York and puts the Quinjet on autopilot. Coulson turns around again, “Okay, Evie?”
“Yes, I'm alright, Phil, that was fun.”
“Would you like to come up front and see.”
Evie brightens and looks at Thor for permission. He smiles and nods; then, he undoes her seatbelt, and Evie goes up front to sit on Coulson's lap. Evie's amazed at how high they're up; she loves how she can see the clouds underneath the Quinjet. She turns around and looks at Thor, “Look, Daddy, we're so high!”
“I know, my princess. One day I will take you flying with Mjolnir.”
Evie's blue eyes lit up, “Really?”
“Of course.”
Evie smiled brightly at her father, then went back to staring out the window. After a while, Evie's head started drooping, and she got off Coulson's lap and went back to her seat; she snuggled into her place and fell asleep. Loki conjured a pillow and a blanket and laid Evie down on the pad then covered her up. Thor smiled down at his daughter.
“She should sleep, the trip will go by faster for her like this,” Thor said.
Loki nodded in agreement.
It turned out that they were right; three hours came and went without Evie, even noticing. The Quinjet landed on the landing pad at Avengers' Tower, and Thor gently woke Evie up, “Evie, we are home, Princess.”
Evie rubbed her eyes and looked at Thor, “Already?”
Thor chuckled, “Yes, you slept the entire flight.”
Evie blushed, “Sorry, Daddy.”
“That is alright, Little One, it was better that you did. Otherwise, you would have been bored.”
Evie nodded and took the cover off, she looked at the blanket and pillow confused, then looked at Loki who was smiling at her, “Thank you, Uncle Loki.”
“You are welcome, Niece,” Loki said, then vanished the blanket and pillow.
Thor helped Evie sat up and checked her braid to make sure that it hadn't come loose, then he took her hand, and he, Evie, Loki, and Coulson, got off the Quinjet and went inside. Evie gasped when she saw that the entire room was decorated in a princess theme, and there was a banner hanging from the ceiling that read WELCOME HOME, EVIE! in big, bold letters and people standing around smiling at her.
Evie looked up at her father, who let out a booming laugh at seeing the decorations for his daughter. “Friends, thank you for the effort to make my Evie feel at home.”
“This is really for me, Daddy,” Evie whispered, but Thor was able to hear her.
“Yes, my sweet, and I know exactly who did this for you. Man of Iron, please come meet my daughter, Evie.”
Tony smirked at everyone and stuck his tongue out at Pepper, causing Evie to giggle at Tony's antics. Tony sauntered up to Evie and smiled at her, Evie couldn't help but smile back. She let go of Thor's hand and stepped forward, “Hello, Man of Iron, but that can't be your real name, you don't look like you're made of Iron.”
Tony was started that Evie didn't know who he was, “Nope, kid, your dad likes to call me that but my real name is Tony Stark,” He looked at her to see if any recognition flashed in her eyes, but there was none.
“Hello, Mr. Stark, I'm Evelyn Thorsdottir, but you can call me Evie. It's nice to meet you.” Evie said, holding out her hand to Tony.
Tony chuckled and took her hand, “Nice to meet you too, Evie, and you can call me Tony.”
“Okay, Tony.”
Tony offered his hand to Evie, “Come on, Kid, let me introduce you to the rest of the gang.”
Evie looked at Thor, who nodded his head. She shyly took Tony's hand, and he led her towards the others. Tony wasn't very good with kids, but he felt a connection with Evie. They had both had a shitty childhood, though hers worse than Tony's, he could still relate to her being shy around new people. And more than anything, Tony wanted Evie to feel comfortable in her new home and especially feel comfortable around him. Tony wanted to be her friend, he confidante and, if necessary, Evie's playmate. Tony promised himself that even though Evie wasn't his, he wouldn't ignore her the way his dad ignored him.
Tony introduced Evie first to Pepper, “Evie I'd like you to meet Virginia Potts, she's the mother hen of all the Avengers and my girlfriend.”
Pepper rolled her eyes and kneeled in front of Evie, “Don't listen to him, Evie, Tony can be a dork sometimes. It's nice to meet you, Evie, you can call me Pepper.”
Evie smiled at Pepper and offered her hand, “It's nice to meet you too, Pepper.” Evie said and shook Pepper's hand.
Natasha and Clint then stepped forward and also kneeled she smiled at the little girl, “Hello, Evie, I'm Natasha, and this is Clint.”
“Hey, kiddo, it's nice to meet you.”
“It's nice to meet both of you. I love your hair, Natasha. My Aunt Petunia said my mom had red hair like yours, and my eyes used to be green like yours,” Evie said.
Natasha gave her a confused look and looked at Thor. Loki stepped forward, “Perhaps I should explain, Evie's mother was a witch, and her stepfather was a wizard. They put a glamour on her to make her look more like her mother and stepfather. When we met her, I noticed the glamour, and I removed it. As you can see, Evie looks like Thor.”
Clint stiffened a little, and Evie notice and stepped away from him. She knew that reaction; he didn't like her because she had magic. Evie's eyes started to fill with tears, and she looked at Clint, “I'm sorry, Mr. Clint, I don't mean to scare you. I'll stay away from you.”
Clint looked at Evie surprised and looked up at Thor, Loki, and Coulson who were all glaring at him, “Evie's aunt and uncle didn't like her magic either and… mistreated her.” Thor said, emphasizing the word mistreated.
Clint got the hint; they beat her for being different. Clint swallowed thickly and smiled at Evie, “I'm not scared of you, kiddo, a little surprised but not scared. You have nothing to worry about, you and I are going to be great friends.”
“Are you sure?”
Clint reached out and hugged Evie, “Absolutely.”
Evie sniffled into his shoulder, “Thank you, Mr. Clint.”
“Just Clint, Little Bird.”
Evie pulled away and smiled at Clint, her blue eyes shining. She liked that nickname.
Bruce was the next one to step forward to introduce himself. He was a little hesitant because of the Other Guy, but Bruce was surprised that he could here Hulk purring in his head, Baby girl. Hulk said.
Evie looked up at Bruce wide-eyed, “Whoa,” She said.
Tony slapped Bruce on the shoulder, “Evie, this is my Science Bro, Bruce Banner.”
“Hello, Mr. Banner, who's the big green guy standing behind you, smiling?”
Bruce's brow furrowed, and he turned around, “What big green guy, Evie?”
“The big green guy that's waving at me.”
Loki walked over and kneeled beside Evie, “You can see the big brute?”
Evie looked at her uncle, “He's not a brute, Uncle, he's nice. And of course, I can see him; he's right there!”
“It must be Evie's magic that allows her to see the Hulk,” Thor said.
“That's the only explanation, Brother,” Loki agreed.
“Can I meet him too, Bruce?”
Bruce looked at everyone nervously. It was Natasha that spoke up, “Not right now, Sweetie, maybe later. Hulk only comes out when we need help.”
“Oh,” Evie said, sounding a little disappointed.
“Come on, kid, there's one more person you need to meet. This is Steve Roger, also known as Captain Capsicle.”
Steve smiled at Evie and offered his hand. Evie looked up at the tall, muscular man that was Steve Roger. She looked at his large hands. Hands that could hurt her, and she hid behind Tony. Steve's smile faltered, and he looked at the little girl in concern. He looked up at Thor and Loki, who looked at each other confused. Why was Evie reacting to Steve like that? It was Coulson who noticed that Evie was staring at Steve's hands and figured it out.
“Steve, Evie's Uncle, was a big man too and had large hands like you.”
Steve was slightly startled that Evie associated him with her uncle; he instantly kneeled and smiled at her. “It's okay, Evie, I understand, I would never hurt you.”
Evie wasn't very convinced, but she held on to Tony's hand tightly and stepped out from behind him. “Hello, Mr. Rogers, it's nice to meet you too,” Evie said shyly.
Steve was a little hurt that Evie was afraid of him, but he smiled anyway, “It's nice to meet you too,” Steve offered his hand and Evie involuntarily flinched, but she took it anyway and shook it.
Tony cleared his throat and gently pulled Evie away from Steve; he looked at Steve and mouthed, ‘Sorry.’ Steve nodded.
“There's one more person you need to meet, Evie,” Tony said.
Evie looked around confused; she didn't see anyone else, “JARVIS, introduce yourself.”
Hello, Miss Thorsdottir. I am JARVIS Mr. Stark's AI.
Evie jumped at hearing a voice coming from nowhere; she looked up at Tony, confused. He smiled down at her and pointed to the speakers, “JARVIS is like our electronic butler and my assistant in my lab,” Tony explained.
And Mr. Stark's babysitter when Ms. Potts isn't around.
Tony huffed and crossed his arms, making Evie giggle, “Alright, I admit it; it's true.” Tony smirked and winked at Evie.
Evie let go of Tony's hand, “Hello, Mr. JARVIS.”
Finally, someone who treats me with some with respect. JARVIS said with what sounded like a little humor in his voice.
“Alright, that's enough out of you. Now let's get this party started with cake and ice cream!”
“No, Tony, lunch first, then cake and ice cream,” Pepper said.
“See what I mean, kid, mother hen.”
“What was that, Tony?”
“I love you?”
“That's what I thought.”
Evie giggled and ran to her father and took his hand as they followed everyone into the dining room.