Shattered

Natasha Romanoff knew that she was paranoid.

Rightfully so- she was a spy, after all. She didn’t think she was nearly as bad as Nick Fury (but, then again, no one really was), just enough to keep her and her loved ones safe.

And this situation? It did not feel safe.

Not only was she back in the compound, surrounded by people who had been, up until today, basically her enemies- at least in the eyes of the law. But two new people had been introduced to the equation (three, really, but she felt bad for including Peter, who had probably never done anything wrong in his life), leaving her to figure them out and study them, since Steve was oblivious, Wanda was wrapped up in Vision, and Sam either didn’t care or was busy psychoanalyzing them (she did too, a bit. Both of those women could most definitely benefit from a therapist).

And then, to make it worse, Thor had shown up with Loki of all people. And then revealed that Hela was known for ‘murderous rampages’ and had been locked up for years by her father. And, ok, she knew that Odin was a terrible person and a worse father, that much was obvious, at least to her, who had spent months studying Thor and by extension his references to his home. And Hela did look like she could go on a murderous rampage, but the longer she studied her, the more she thought that she probably wouldn’t. And Loki- Loki didn’t look nearly as deranged as usual. He was more subdued. Whether that was because he was with Thor or more time had passed or something else, she didn’t know (she would. eventually).

But, despite the fact that both of Thor’s siblings weren’t as murderous as they could have been, she was paranoid. And so. She kept two guns under her pillow instead of one, packed bags for all of the Avengers in case they needed to make a quick escape, and told Friday to be ready at any moment to leave with the quinjet. She put several knives and guns around the room in case she needed to grab one while cornered, and had a couple more destructive weapons safely tucked away. All of which was, perhaps, a bit much, but if something happened to anyone here and she could’ve stopped it by being more prepared-

And she didn’t sleep. She tried to, a little, but the second she started drifting off (several hours after everyone else had gone to bed, prepping the room like this took time), her ears picked up banging from down the hall.

She was out of bed in an instant, gun in hand. She walked out to the hallway, stealthy as ever, and strained her ears.

The banging sounded again. Hm. Down near Wanda’s room-

And Hela’s.

Heart in her throat, she crept down the hall, gun gripped tightly in hand. Wanda, she knew, slept deeply whenever she wasn’t having a nightmare, which gave Hela and her friend ample opportunity to kill her- wait, no, Vision was there, would they be able to get rid of him? He didn’t sleep at all, but Hela was apparently known for ‘murderous rampages’ and she was, of course, Thor and Loki’s sister and therefore powerful-

She paused at a curve in the hallway, peeking around to where she’d heard the sound, and froze when she heard a choked sobbing noise.

“Ok, um… come here, let’s go out to the- the common area-”

That was Brunnhilde. The sobbing had to be Hela, because no one else would go to Brunnhilde in the middle of the night.

She slumped against the wall as she heard them move towards the common area. It was nothing- well, it wasn’t nothing, it sounded like she’d been having a nightmare, and she knew Odin was horrible and it could be nothing good- but at least she wasn’t killing anyone.

After a few moments, she rubbed her eyes. “Hey, Fri?”

“Yes, Miss Romanoff?”

There was a bit of a scrambling sound in the common area, likely someone falling to the floor- whether it was Brunnhilde or Hela, she didn’t know. 

“If anyone else tries to go in the common area, could you tell them to avoid it until- that- is over? I know a lot of them are up sometimes-”

“Of course.”

She sighed, putting the safety back onto her gun. “Thanks, Fri.”

She chanced one more glance down the hall into the common area, where she could faintly hear Brunnhilde talking softly. Sighed again, and walked back down the hall to her room.

-------------------------

Nearly 3 hours later, as the sky was beginning to lighten and the sun was hiding just under the horizon, Hela sighed deeply, wiped at her eyes, and extracted herself from where she’d been laying on Brunnhilde’s chest. Brunnhilde started a bit, looking at her in confusion before slumping down against the couch. “Ow.”

“Mph,” Hela grumbled. Sitting on the floor for 3 hours had been horrible for her back. And shoulders. And neck. And-

They both got to their feet, stretching out sore muscles, and looked at each other. Hela tried to ignore the shame wracking her body- warriors don’t show weakness, daughter, you’re not allowed to be weak- and smiled tiredly. “I- I don’t-”

“I won’t tell anyone.”

She relaxed. “Thank you.” She didn’t need to say what for- Brunnhilde understood, nodded, and linked her arm around hers.

“C’mon, Majesty, let’s get something to eat, I’m fucking starving.”

Hela let herself be led into the kitchen, and they stood there and stared at the cupboards. “Um. I don’t. Really know what Midgardians eat. Or how to get it.”

Hela unlinked their arms and opened one of the doors. Did they keep all of their food in here? What was it? There were just more- boxes- and things-

“Oh, here, there’s fruit.” Oh, fruit. Fruit was good. She closed the door and turned around just in time to catch the apple tossed her way.

The door opened (she silently thanked Brunnhilde for not commenting on her slight flinch), and Rogers stepped in. “Hey, guys. How’s it going?”

Hela wrinkled her nose. “Why are you sweating?”

“I was out running. You know, working out?”

Brunnhilde snorted, taking a bite of her apple. “Why? It’s barely even morning yet.”

Rogers shrugged, and opened another door (it was a bit different, it lit up inside when it opened and stood a little separate from the rest), pulling out a tall glass. “Want any orange juice?”

Hela frowned, and inspected the liquid. It seemed safe enough, and she’d liked the juice last night. “Alright.” Brunnhilde nodded in affirmation. 

He poured it out into three glasses. Hm. Not bad. “So why are you guys up?”

Hela glared at him, and he gulped. “Does there have to be a reason?”

“W- no, of course not- just-”

“Hela’s just being difficult. We couldn’t sleep, Midgard’s got weird beds.” Rogers looked like he was going to say something else, but seemed to finally notice both of them were looking even more tired than they had the day before, and decided against it.

“Alright, then. Pancakes?”

“Ooh, are we making pancakes? Cause I haven’t had your pancakes in way too long, Rogers.” Stark walked in, looking a bit rumpled, ink stain on his cheek.

Rogers raised an eyebrow consternatedly and got out a bowl. “Yeah. Did you sleep at all last night, Tony?”

“Nope,” Stark grunted, falling into the chair next to Hela. She sent him her best glare. It didn’t work (he must be immune because of Pepper). “Too much to think about.”

“Pepper won’t be happy to hear that.”

Hela was glad she wasn’t the only one who got startled- Brunnhilde cursed quietly, Stark jumped up and clutched at his heart, and Rogers spilled a bit of water on the counter. “Jesus, Romanoff. We need to put a bell on you.”

She scowled at Romanoff, who made her way around the counter to grab a glass of water. “Well, I’m afraid poor Steve’s old heart might fail if he gets surprised too much, so….”

Rogers made a face at her, and jabbed at her side playfully. “Very funny. Original, too.”

“Oh, shush, Rogers.”

The four of them sat at the counter for a few minutes while Rogers made- pancakes? Another Midgardian thing she was unfamiliar with. Stark poked at a strange machine to make a strong smelling brew, Brunnhilde yawned and put her head down on the table, and Romanoff just- looked- at her. It was unnerving. And that was coming from her.

She did not get the chance to ask her about this, because the smell of cooking pancakes worked a charm in getting every other Avenger up and into the kitchen. Wilson walked in first, already dressed, calling “dibs” (whatever that meant) on the first pancake, followed by Rhodes, who cursed at him. Banner peeked his head out of the hallway, and, upon confirming that there was food, made his way in, pajama shirt covering his hands. Maximoff and Vision emerged next, the former still in shorts and a t-shirt with hair mussed up, the latter looking as chipper as ever (did Vision sleep?)

“Ah, I was wondering- I heard a banging sound last night, what was that?” Vision asked, going to help Rogers with the sudden influx of pancake demands. Hela froze up, and glanced at Brunnhilde.

Stark frowned. “I didn’t hear banging last night.”

“Weren’t you holed up in your lab?” Romanoff asked, reaching out and snatching a pancake from Wilson’s plate. “I heard it too. Checked it out, just something smashing against the window. Probably from Thor’s, um, dramatic arrival.”

“Are you sure? I thought it was-” He cut off abruptly, and Hela looked down in time to see Romanoff’s foot retracting from where she’d kicked him. He frowned, and turned to Maximoff, who looked her straight in the eye before turning back to Vision and shaking her head slightly.

Did she know? Romanoff certainly knew (she knows that you are weak, where is your sense of dignity? It really was annoying to have him back in her head. He’d been quiet for so long on Sakaar), she’d probably seen last night. 

Rogers looked between all of them. “Oookay. Well. Who wants the next pancakes?”

Everyone at the table seemingly forgot about the incident, instead turning to war over breakfast foods.

--------------------

Doctor Stephen Strange frowned, sitting up. His sensors were picking up- Loki? Why would-

He had to go investigate this. Immediately. Creating a portal, he let it lead him to Loki, and emerged into-

Chaos. What the-

Such was the activity in the room that barely anyone noticed the actual wizard (sorcerer) stepping through a portal into their living room. Wanda Maximoff and Natasha Romanoff, specifically, who were standing slightly to the side, stared right at him- weren’t they supposed to be on the run? He was pretty sure they were supposed to be on the run.

What was- he peered into the group of people gathered around a table. Were they arm wrestling?

“Come on, Majesty!”

“Don’t let our sister beat you, Thor!”

“Would you like to try, brother?”

“What is going on here?”

People noticed him then- Thor gaped at him, and the woman across from him slammed his arm down on the table. “Who are you?” asked Tony Stark, slipping money to a smug looking Steve Rogers. 

“I am Dr. Stephen Strange. I monitor potential threats in this world, and I sensed him-”

“Just now? Cause he got here hours ago, you really suck at your job-”

“I was sleeping. Even I need to sleep,” he scowled. (That was a problem, though. He should find a way to- set an alarm, or something-)

“Uh huh. And what exactly are you?”

“The Sorcerer Supreme.”

“That’s a stupid name.”

“Tony? Uh, let’s not insult the wizard,” James Rhodes winced.

“Fine. Anyway, Gandalf, there’s no need for you to be here. Threat’s all good, you don’t need to worry, we’ve got it covered, alright? Reindeer Games hasn’t killed anyone yet.”

“Excuse me if I’m not reassured,” Stephen gritted out. “And there are some superpowered people here that I’ve never- who are you?”

The woman who had been arm wrestling Thor crossed her arms. “Hela.”

He immediately recoiled. Odin- the father- had visited his Sanctum not too long ago (and had been rather surprised to find him and not the Ancient One), and had warned him against this very woman.

“Everyone stand back-”

Stark had gauntlets covering his hands in an instant. “I said, there’s no threat here. Now get lost before I blast you back to whatever hole you crawled out of.”

“Um, Tony. Calm down, ok? Look, Dr.- Strange, was it? I’m sure we can work something out that doesn’t involve anyone getting hurt,” Rogers said, stepping forward and putting a hand on Stark’s arm. Stark lowered his gauntlets slightly.

“Odin told me that she was an even greater threat than he is,” he said, pointing to Loki.

“I take offense to that,” Loki grumbled.

“I wouldn’t listen to what my father says,” Hela warned. “He tends to have- bad judgement.”

“He said you slaughtered millions.”

“Under his command.”

Oh. He- had not known that. Perhaps he should not have allowed Odin’s extended stay on Midgard. (He really needed a better warning system. Could you do that? Sense someone’s evilness through a spell? He’d have to go through some books.)

“Well, long story short, Merlin, you came here for nothing,” Stark shrugged, gauntlets retreating into a stone on his chest. “Bet you feel pretty dumb-”

“Tony,” Pepper Potts warned. “Please, don’t insult the wizard.”

“Sorcerer.”

“Whatever,” Stark said, rolling his eyes. “Anyway, if there’s nothing else you need, kindly escort yourself back to Hogwarts-”

“Ah!”

t

They all turned to look as the Vision stumbled, clutching his forehead, and fell to the floor. 

---------------------------

It was too early, Hela decided, to be dealing with Sorcerers. Especially the Sorcerer Supreme- and, of course, the fact that her dear father had taken it upon himself to inform one of the Earth’s (and, she had to admit, probably universe’s) most powerful figures that she was “dangerous.” And yes, sure, in her youth (a.k.a. A month ago) she had been a little erratic, and she had slaughtered many, many people, but much of that (perhaps more than she would like to admit) was due to Odin. 

Of course, he seemed momentarily baffled when she told him that, but had at least backed down and his cape had stopped looking like it was about to attack (did it do that on its own?), so her imminent death seemed a less likely possibility. (Stark’s death, or at least serious maiming, on the other hand, was becoming a very likely possibility, as he kept calling Strange odd names that seemed to do nothing but infuriate the sorcerer). 

And then, to worsen what had been, before this, a perfectly wonderful morning (proving her strength against her younger brother had been fun), Vision had just- collapsed- suddenly and randomly. Maximoff had tried to grab him, but hadn’t been quick enough to stop his fall to the floor. 

“Vis? What’s wrong, man?” Wilson asked, offering him a hand. Vision took the hand away from his forehead, revealing a yellow stone that she had overlooked before which was now glowing almost painfully. 

She squinted at it. It- actually kind of looked familiar, but she just couldn’t-

“Wait. Is that the Mind Stone?!” she demanded (squeaked a bit, at the end, Norns she hoped no one had noticed that). Thor looked at her guiltily and nodded. “Wh- why does he have the Mind Stone in his forehead?”

“Um, I think I’d also like to know the answer to that question,” Brunnhilde frowned. “I thought it was hidden away so that no one could find it.” She glared hard at Thor.

“It wasn’t my fault! Loki’s the one who showed up with it-”

“Well, it was given to me by- oh, dear.”

Hela raised an eyebrow. “Oh, dear?”

“I think I know what is happening to Vision.”

“Would you like to tell us?” Brunnhilde gritted out.

“Erm. It’s- a long story?”

“Lackey. Speak.”

“Loki.”

“Whatever.”

Loki shifted uncomfortably. “Well, remember how I invaded New York?”

“Yeah, Reindeer Games, that kind of thing tends to stand out in one’s memory,” Stark snapped.

“Yes. Well. Before that- oh, this is a very long story. You all know that I’m adopted, yes?”

“It’s been mentioned,” Romanoff said.

“Right. Odin picked me up from another Realm after he won a battle there. The, ah. Realm of Jotunheim, actually.”

Hela and Brunnhilde gaped at each other. “He did what?” they both said at the same time.

“I’m actually Laufey’s son.”

She blinked at him. “You- you don’t look like a Jotun.”

“I mask it, usually. It tends to be off putting.”

“Aren’t Jotuns the Frost Giants that you said were your enemies?” Romanoff frowned. “So your father captured the son of his greatest rival and raised him as his own?”

Thor and Loki both nodded. She- Odin just- she knew he was awful but- “Yeah, that’s messed up,” Stark breathed, running a hand through his hair. “But, no offense, Elsa-” Thor made a small choking noise- “what does that have to do with my robo-son collapsing to the floor?”

Hela frowned. “Who is Elsa?”

“I cannot believe you’ve never heard of-”

“We’ll tell you later,” Rogers said firmly. “Loki?”

“I was getting to that. You know, probably, that after I found out that I was adopted, I fell off of the Bifrost and was presumed dead?”

“You what-”

“Yep, we got that.”

“Right. When I fell, I was- saved- by a Titan by the name of Thanos.” He paused for dramatic effect- everyone continued looking confused. He sighed. “He’s completely mad. He’s hell bent on collecting all of the Infinity Stones so that he can wipe out half of all life in the universe-”

“What the fuck,” Wilson breathed.

“- for, frankly, even more insane reasons. He fears overpopulation will eventually lead to the death of everyone, and that this is the ‘merciful’ route. He knew that the Tesseract- the Space Stone- was on Earth, because he used the recently acquired Mine Stone to track it. He, ah, persuaded me to go and get it for him. I persuaded him to lend me the scepter with the stone in it, and brought it to Earth with me to aid me in my ventures. Of course, soon after I was dragged back to Asgard in chains, so I’m not entirely clear on how it ended up in this android’s head. I’m sure it’s a long and fascinating story that will have to wait for another day, but the point is, that is what happens when Thanos attempts to track a stone. Meaning that he has found another, meaning that he is, ah, probably coming here. To get this one.”

Thor gaped at him in shock and mingled horror. “Wha- ho- I-”

“Which one do you think he has?” Hela interjected once it was clear that Thor would not be forming a comprehensible sentence in the near future.

“Probably the Power Stone. He doesn’t know where Soul is, Time rests with the Sorcerer Supreme, and Strange hasn’t felt any disruptions, Space is safe on Asgard, and the Aether is safe with the Collector for now.”

“You left the Aether with the Collector?” Brunnhilde demanded. “What is it with you people and horrible storage places for Infinity Stones?”

“Can he be beaten? Thanos, can we fight him and win?” Rogers asked, stepping forward.

Loki snorted. “By you Midgardians? Unlikely. His power far outmatches yours. You were barely able to defeat me, and I was barely trying.”

“Come on, I’m sure we could hold our own,” Rhodes said. “I mean, I couldn’t, but, you know, Maximoff can kick some ass.”

“Who?”

Rhodes pointed at Maximoff, and Loki snorted. “Oh, please-”

“Would you like me to send you through the floor as well?”

Vision winced, this time in some remembrance of, apparently, being sent through the floor. “I vote that we don’t go down that route again.”

“Joking, Vis. Mostly.”

“Either way,” Loki snapped. “You could perhaps beat Thanos if all of you combined forces. If he didn’t have a stone. But he does, and the Power Stone is nothing to be trifled at. And that is not to mention the sheer amount of forces he has at his command. You saw through the portal, Stark, did you not? Yes, you took a considerable chunk out of his army, but there is much more where that came from.”

Stark paled, and Rogers sighed. “What about Asgard? Do you think they would be able to fight against those armies?”

Thor shrugged. “Asgard’s armies are formidable. They would have won the Battle of New York easily. But if it came down to sheer force of numbers-”

“I wouldn’t call them formidable, unless they’ve gotten better since my exile. When I was ten, I cut through them like a knife through butter,” Hela snorted. (Not out of choice- after she had balked from performing an execution, Odin had run her through yet another series of vigorous training exercises, ending in an all out battle- nonlethal, of course- with Asgard’s entire army. She had defeated them, yes, but had nearly lost a limb in the process- not that the Avengers needed to know that). 

“And we have you three,” Rogers spoke up. “If Hela alone is more powerful than Asgard’s army, who knows what all three of you could do against Thanos?”

Loki considered this, then shrugged. “It’s possible. Though, again, the Power Stone would make quick work of us- but he is arrogant. He may try to fight us himself.”

“It would be a mistake,” Thor promised. 

“Yes, it probably would be. But the rest of you would still have trouble with his army, never mind his children.”

“Um, I’m sorry. His what?” Wilson asked.

“Not actual children. They’re more like his servants, but they are all very powerful. I doubt you would be able to easily defeat them.”

“Are any of them potential allies? Maybe discontent with his goals, or something?” Rogers asked. “That could be useful.”

Loki frowned, clearly flicking through names. “Hm. Last I knew, they were all, ah, extraordinarily loyal. But with a good argument and a quick tongue- both of which I am renowned for- there are some that could potentially be reasoned with to at least sit out the fight. Unfortunately, neither are all that powerful- Romanoff could probably take at least one. But it would be something.”

“Can you get in touch with them before Thanos arrives?”

Loki huffed. “Well, I do not know when Thanos will be here.” Rogers gave him a look. “But- perhaps. They may still use the same networks, same codes- I caught wind of some of them while I was with them. Scrap- Brunnhilde, may I use your ship’s communication system? Presuming it hasn’t been damaged by alcohol spillage?”

She made a face at him. “No, it still works. And I’m coming with you. I don’t trust you or anyone else with my ship, Lackey.”

“Loki.”

“Whatever.”

They scowled at each other for a moment before Stark cleared his throat. “Uh- Elsa? I know we probably won’t know who the hell you’re talking about, but who exactly are you contacting?”

Loki smiled, breaking his look with Brunnhilde. “Two of Thanos’s children. Sisters. Gamora, and Nebula.”