Vagary

Chapter 5: “ Trust”

Trust:

/ trʌst / Noun

The delicate yet resilient bond, woven from shared experiences, vulnerability, and empathy, bridges hearts and creates an intricate tapestry of assurance between individuals.

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“Everybody has a chapter they don’t read out loud. Shallow waters are noisy; deep waters are silent.”

 -Anonymous

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March 9, Avengers Tower, New York City, Earth

As the door to the infirmary room creaked open, revealing Avengers, Nova looked up from where she sat on the bed, a weak but genuine smile gracing her lips. She was affectionately scratching  Prem’s jaw, the white feline nestled on her lap, his eyes full-closed purring in contentment.

Nova's appearance struck them all. Her skin, once vibrant light tan, was now a shade too pale, with an unsettling sheen of sweat. Her once bright auburn hair was now dull and stitching to her forehead.  Her voice, when she greeted and thanked them for both saving her and agreeing to hear her tell, was a mere whisper, each word carrying the weight of her weakened state. Dark circles hung beneath her eyes, giving her an almost ethereal, otherworldly appearance, as if she had endured trials that defied comprehension.

“Damn girl, you look like shit.” Tony blurted, couldn’t help himself.

The tension in the room seemed to ease slightly with the brunette man’s comment, eliciting a light chuckle followed by a cough from Nova despite her weakened state.

Her state made them question the purpose of this meeting, Bruce tried to address everyone’s worries about her condition while checking on her as the only doctor on the team, and they could do this talk later when she gets a little better, however, Nova politely dismissed their worries. The truth was she was feeling more uncomfortable than before because of their discreet pitying glances.

"You can stay here as long as you need," Tony stated, a hint of a smile tugging at his lips. "Even with that little furry rage over there. We'll make an exception to the 'no pets' rule this time."

Nova's gratitude was evident in her tired eyes as she nodded. "Thank you. All of you."

But as the brief respite passed, the elephant in the room couldn’t be ignored any much longer. "Nova," Nathasha began, her voice calm and measured, "we need to talk." With a surprisingly soft tone she added, "Hey, we're not here to interrogate you,"

"We just want to understand what's going on," Tony chimed in, his usual snark replaced with a rare hint of sincerity.

Nova's voice, when she spoke, was raspy and weak, matching her appearance. "I appreciate your concern. I know things have been... chaotic."

Clint stepped forward, his gaze penetrating when he glared at Thor, later the white cat. "Chaos is an understatement. Loki is brought here without our permission, and that's thrown everything into disarray."

Nova nodded, her grip on Prem never faltering. "I know. And I want to help fix it. But I  am aware I need your trust." She inhaled a deep breath and cleared her raspy throat before continuing. “Sorry, my throat is still aching.  I know you need to know a few things about me before trusting me. “

Without lifting her hand on the white feline, she reached for a leather-wrapped book on the nightstand beside her bed.  Then she handed the book to Tony, who was the closest to her bed. “ This is my Vision  Journal Volume Eleven, I note down all of my sightings as much as I can remember once they’re seen. For understanding, Mr. Stark, please read aloud the last entry. I will answer your questions as much as I can after you read it. Foresight is a little hefty nuisance; without risking the future, that is all I can voice down for helping you. After our talk, which will be a long one, if you want to know more about me or my past, can I plead for your patience as my voice gets better? ” 

The team found her request reasonable and nodded for Tony to continue.  All waited and listened patiently as the brunette man read aloud her last dream with Mene, the wolf, and the winter yard.

“So, Mene is your grandmother as your journal says,”  Tony stated after reading the entry. With addressing the blonde Æesir in the room, “ Then what does this make you? Are you a ‘god’, like our almighty fella here? Earlier you said you were not human and from Earth originally, What are you exactly?”

 Thor, who had been staring at the sick woman’s ears partly visible from her fizzy hair blurted,  “You are partly Alfim, my lady. Am I correct? ”

 Nova’s faint chapped lips turned upwards with a nervous smile, When spoke again her voice was a little better. “I presume all of you are good with mathematics at some level, My mother is Mene’s child and has Alfim blood in her veins which makes me half-Elven. On the other hand, as far as I knew my father was half Æesir and half Vanir noble, but I never met him so these are the estimated measures of my bloodline.” 

She took a breath and continued, “ I am 791 names days old to be exact, my mother birthed me on the whereabouts where the modern Poland- Germany border nowadays resides after she fled from the Alfheim War Council because her espionage was covered. She had aligned with the rest of the surviving Dark Elves.  I lived with her until the middle years of the Trier witch trials when she disappeared, literally leaving me on the stick to burn.”  Her haunted expression held sorrow, and pain masked with darkness filtering through as she smiled bitterly. 

“I  almost got caught a few times because of my Seidr, the gift I was born for, and because of that I had to learn how to hide it, how to camouflage myself while living with sometimes other mortals like me running from the bloodshed, sometimes completely by myself. I was a mere child and lived as a nomad, wandering here and there for about thirty years, never risking to stay somewhere for too long to raise any suspicions since I wasn’t aging as humans do.”  

The team looked at her emphatically, “How did you end up in space?”  the blonde archer asked curiously. “With your magic?” 

Nova shook her head, “ The Magpies saved me and took me in for a while. Then they took me  to Vanaheim for my proper training on my gift among  some of the most powerful witches of Nines.” 

“The what?” The Avengers asked simultaneously, then their eyes widened with the realization dawning on them one by one, Steve and Natasha were the first ones to make the connection. “Like the ones in your dream?” 

The young witch smiled contently, “Yes, exactly. ”

The blonde man explained better for her, “They are Jotun, just like Loki. Three huntresses; known as The Magpies. They hunt between realms, unlike any other Jötnar in which they are forbidden to do so, thanks to their Seidr, which is seen as extremely rare among their kind. The tales say many about them, they dress in black and white armor, build for speed and agility, and sometimes turn into those birds. They’re master illusionists, shapeshifters, and excellent fighters.”

The sick woman breathed deeply, “ My coven stayed silent far too long than I expected. I am afraid, the magpies are coming for me.”

“ And you are certain it’s them you saw,” the ginger woman pointed, “ How about the seasons?”

Nova calmly answered, “ I have my speculations, but the honest answer is, that can be two days, weeks, months, or even years; there’s no certain way to know which one. But it certainly will happen, because they don’t give up easily once they start their hunt...” 

Tony was the one who addressed the obvious suggestion. “ And why do you think all of this relates to our stabby maniac, no offense, locked in our basement?” 

The young witch had a gloomy expression,  and the spark in her eyes disappeared again. “ In the visions of possible future, Mene showed me, I couldn’t comprehend what I saw. At least, all I remember is it was morbid. But there is one specific image I could remember after waking up and thinking about Mene warning me about both princes.” 

When she continued her hand on the white feline’s fur faltered its movement, and her voice staggered as she looked at Thor’s blue eyes, she was already regretting her decision. “ In the first one,  and I am sure it was at Valaskjalf dungeons,  I saw an Einherjar informing Prince Loki of Almother’s death after the raid of dark elves in his prison cell and it broke him, ” 

With her revelation, the blonde Æesir stormed to her bed, “Lady, do your ears hear what you are saying?!” he roared with fury and fear, he was visibly shaking with rage when Steve and Tony tried to contain him before he crushed the weak woman, “If you are toying with us, witch, I swear to Norns, I personally make sure your death will be a reward you will beg for!”   

“ Woah, easy, easy! “ Tony tried to calm him down, “ Let’s hear her out first OK?”  He looked at Nova incredulously, she had fat tears in her gray eyes, “ Geez girl, why the hell didn’t you start with that first, you literally talk about his mother’s murder!” 

“STARK!”

 The brunette man raised his hands to his chest in protest, stating he was innocent, “ OK, OK! I am shutting up!” 

“ I am sorry!”  Nova cried out with tears falling out, “ Your Highness, I am really sorry,” she tried to not choke while controlling her raspy breath, Thor intensely looked at the young woman, his voice was made of ice. “How certain are you with what you saw?” 

“ With Prince Loki no longer in prison at Asgard, I assume for now we can avoid that fate,” She had regret and shame on her features when she looked back at everyone. “ And I was ready to do anything to not let him go back there and avoid Mene’s warnings,”

“ You were ready to kidnap Loki out of Asgard,” Thor gasped with realization. “ You were ready to kill him if necessary.”

Nova did her best to not hide away her gaze. “ I was.”

For a while nobody dared to speak, they didn’t know what to say. After an intense silence, the blonde man concluded, “Good.”

Clint’s gaze was sharp- softer than the time before he entered the room- and calculating as he studied Nova, his mind working through the possibilities. “ If you insist on seeing him, what are you going to do now?”

Nova's eyes gleamed with fierce determination as she leaned forward, her voice steady despite her weakened state. "I want to see Loki. Talk to him and understand his intentions. He can’t be back on Asgard without redeeming himself. The warnings I received were way bigger than him, lurking in the dark corners of the universe. If he has even the slightest answer, we desperately need to know that."

Natasha exchanged a glance with Tony and Steve before turning her attention back to Nova. She had always been one to trust her instincts, but in this situation, even her instincts were wavering. If what Nova was saying was true, they couldn’t always be ready to face the threat. 

"You realize how risky that is, right?" Steve stated he was also trying to think through possibilities.

Nova nodded. "Believe me, I do. But it's a risk I'm willing to take. The whole team can be ready to step in if anything goes wrong. I truly believe this is the best way to figure out what to do next."

Tony's eyes narrowed as he looked at Nova, his tone still stern. "We've been burned before, Nova. We trusted Loki once, and look where that got us."

Nova met Tony's gaze, her own eyes filled with determination. "I'm not him, and I'm not asking for blind trust. " She looked into everyone's eyes as she continued, “ Whatever the team decides, the responsibility of that decision will be on me, I assure you. Prince Thor informed me of his condition, he has no powers until he redeems himself. If he succeeds in escaping, I will not let him have his way even if he kills me.”

The ginger woman, recognizing the wisdom in Nova's proposal, considered the potential benefits of such an encounter. She glanced at the blonde archer, who wore a skeptical expression, his protective instincts on high alert. Nova's stormy gray orbs met Natasha's forest greens, and there was a silent plea in them- a plea for a chance to prove her intentions.

The redhead finally spoke, her voice cool and analytical. "If we agree to this, what's the plan?"

With a determined glint in her eyes, “Let me see him first, and evaluate with my own eyes. And you will have your judgment on behalf of his fate.” Her proposal caught them off guard. 

She kept arguing passionately for her case. "You can monitor the interaction, and ensure the safety of everyone involved," she proposed. "You have the power to intervene if anything goes wrong. It's a chance to assess the threat he poses, and the only chance to see if he can redeem himself as he is sent here for. If we need to make an informed decision on his fate, we need to take this chance."

Natasha considered Nova's words, her gaze intense. "Alright. I'll give it a shot and will defend your judgment. But if anything seems off, we're shutting it down immediately."

“ And you are willing to take all the responsibilities, every action he takes, every mistake he makes, even the smallest one?” Clint argued.

Nova nodded once again, quite serious  “ I swear on Norns, I am willing to pay for any consequences, with no bantering and no hesitation,”

After a tense silence, Tony's voice cut through, his tone firm. "Fine," he grumbled. "But some of us will be a part of this meeting directly and the others will be watching your every move. If Loki poses any threat or things go south in any other way, we won't hesitate to take action. Consider this your only chance.

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The dark prince was sitting on the ground of his confined cell, his legs crossed and an air of restlessness about him. 

Sleeping, meditating, falling through the endless pit of his thoughts, he tried everything he could to pass his time, after realizing there was no escape. He was alone, his last guard left him probably hours ago. He could feel he was still being watched through the security cameras above the corner of his glass confinement.

 Imprisonment was nothing new to him, but the lack of interaction, immobilization, and solitude had worn on him, gnawing at his patience. He craved something - anything - to break the monotony. His hands idly traced patterns on the ground, his gaze distant as he contemplated the endless expanse of time that stretched before him.

The sound of the cell doors sliding open, however, snapped Loki from his reverie. His emerald eyes flicked towards the entrance, narrowing as he took in the unexpected visitors. Avengers, he noted, each one a distinct presence. Natasha Romanow; the spy with the cold gaze calculating, Steve Rogers; the man froze in time, Tony Stark; the famous self-proclaimed genius, and Thor; his own brother, the one whose shadow he could never quite escape. A lie that has fed him with a silver spoon, and poisoned him.

But what truly caught his attention was the sick woman having support from Æesir’s arm, a young woman Loki had never seen before. He studied her, his curiosity piqued. Her presence was unexpected, and her frail appearance contradicted the power he sensed within her. He quite knew exactly what she was and what kind of illness could cause her state.

Loki's lips curled into a sardonic predatory smile, a spark of amusement glinting in his eyes.

"Well, well," the raven-haired man drawled, his voice smooth and sweet, dripping with false sincerity and mockery. "If it isn't my favorite welcoming committee. To what do I owe this pleasure?"

The room seemed to grow colder as Loki's words hung in the air. The Avengers exchanged knowing glances, their suspicions confirmed - His arrogance was as alive as ever.

 Natasha's eyes narrowed, her posture defensive as she stepped forward, the tension in the room palpable. Her green eyes were like steel, her gaze never leaving the man as she spoke, her tone cutting like a blade. "We're not here for your entertainment, Loki," the spy retorted, her voice laced with a cold edge. "We're here to discuss your current situation."

Tony crossed his arms, his expression a mix of annoyance and skepticism. "Yeah, don't flatter yourself too much. We're here because you've been causing enough trouble to last a lifetime. You know, that time you tried to conquer Earth? Just a friendly visit, right?"

Loki leaned forward against the glass barrier of his cell, his posture casual but his eyes calculating. "Ah, yes, my past misdeeds, how nostalgic. But what fun is life without a little trouble, Stark?"

Steve's jaw tightened, his blue eyes locked on Loki's. "Your idea of fun has cost lives, including innocent ones. His voice carried a controlled anger. "You're not off the hook, Loki."

The dark prince waved a dismissive hand. "Whatever you say, the righteous Avengers, always seeking justice. How noble." His thin lips curled into a mocking smile as he inclined his head slightly, acknowledging Nova's presence. "And you've decided to do that by bringing in … Where did you even find one of those ?”

"Treat the lady respectfully, Loki," Thor warned him with a cold glare, his tone low and protective. "We both know our mother taught you better than this,"

The raven-haired man let out an unimpressed huff from his lung as he leaned back, “ Oh, speak as if you are not the one who insulted her kind for your whole life. You mocked me for eons because of my seidr, you’re such a hypocrite, Thor.”

Nova couldn’t help but roll her eyes with annoyance, “OK, enough of your sibling rivalry.” She snapped with a raspy voice, earning amused surprised expressions from everyone except Loki and Thor, and earning a chuckle from Prem who had been watching the whole ordeal from the meeting room with the rest of the team- Clint Barton and Bruce Banner. “We're not here to exchange pleasantries, Your Highness. We're here to discuss the future, we need answers.”

Loki's gaze shifted, locking onto the young woman standing beside Thor. His sharp eyes traced her form, assessing her, noticed her slightly pointed ears hidden behind her fizzy auburn hair in bad condition,  and a flicker of curiosity danced within his emerald orbs. "And who might you be little witch?" he asked, his tone playful and suggestive, veiling the insinuation in his words.

Nova's expression remained neutral, her gaze meeting his analyzing look with a mixture of intrigue and wariness. Behind the sharp features of the handsome prince, she could sense the dormant power emanating from him; the darkness and mystery seemed to coil around the tall man like a serpent, ready to strike. Even if he was too short for a Jotun, the tales of him did their justice, He truly was the master magician of Asgard.

 Despite her weakened state, she held her own and walked forward through the glass walls, her gray eyes steady as they locked onto him while making a small courtesy. “ I am Novandéyri Försterin, a novice of Völva Suveren.”

The tension in the room was palpable as Loki and Nova locked eyes, The Avengers, still on guard, exchanged uncertain glances, their expressions a mixture of caution and curiosity.

Loki's gaze remained fixed on Nova, his expression a mix of curiosity and something deeper that nobody could quite decipher. His lips curved into a half-smile, his tone dripping with charm. "Is that so? A seer of Norns, are you?"

The hairs on her neck pringled with the familiar sensation of danger. Without flinching, her gray eyes never faltered their contact with his emerald ones staring into her soul.  "I am. And I'm here to get the answers I need."

Pale pink lips curved into a smirk, his tone laced with mockery. "And why would I share anything with you, Sorceress? What could you possibly offer that would make me divulge my secrets?"

The young witch’s voice was calm against her rapidly beating heart, her gaze unwavering. " I propose to you the freedom of choice, Your Highness. Your actions have left a trail of chaos and destruction. Once you listen, then consider whether redemption might be your path out of this darkness."

Loki's amusement didn't waver as he leaned back against the cell wall, his posture relaxed. "Ah, spoken like a true judge and jury. How fascinating that a halfling already drew her conclusions about me."

Nova's lips tightened as she glared, her resolve unyielding. "I've seen enough to form an opinion. And right now, the only thing I'm interested in is whether you are willing to redeem your past actions to prevent the future I saw."

The dark prince’s eyes narrowed, his gaze piercing through Nova. "Ah, the seer speaks of a future that none can escape. How very ominous. You speak with conviction, yet, you know nothing of me, peasant wretch."

Nova's lips quirked into a wry smile. She would be a dirty liar if she said she didn’t like that familiar feeling. "And you know nothing of me, you condescending pompous ass. But sometimes, it takes the taste of being stripped of your abilities and leashed like a dog, of being at the mercy of others." 

Loki's smirk was replaced with an offended icy glare as the scowling faces of everyone else lit with amusement, as her witty comeback earned audible gasps from some. The young witch smiled sweetly at the prince triumphantly,  “Especially when they hold the knowledge of your doom at their hands.”

The dark prince’s fingers tapped rhythmically on the ground as he considered her words. The room was filled with silence, each Avenger holding their breath, waiting for his response.

"Ah, the persuasive power of desperation," Loki mused, his voice no longer dripping with mockery. "Very well, little witch. You've piqued my interest. I'll entertain this conversation. But know this, I won't be your pawn."

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The deer took a sharp turn and sprinted into the woods as the magpies followed her behind. She still could hear and pick up the three birds chasing her. The deer’s chest tightened with worry as she ran. They were catching up to her pace. All of a sudden, she felt sharpness cutting through her flesh causing sharp pain jolting through his left leg, however, instead of the cold steel or one of the magpies’ sharp beaks she was expecting to see, it was a black wolf’s jaw attacking her from sideways.

She tried to get rid of the wolf but the deer realized the crucial mistake she made; she failed to realize the steep where the woods abruptly halted her path in time.

Both the wolf and the deer fell and disappeared in the wake of the coming nightfall.

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