Home again
“Tony, we’re back.”
“Screw that, what’s with all the hand holding? Huh? They cure you up there?” Steve felt Thor’s hand tighten at Tony’s careless remarks. It bolstered Steve, to have that physical reminder that not only is there someone who can safely touch him, but who actively wants to, and more.
“Steven is not sick. He does not need curing Anthony.”
“You left and no one could touch him, and now you’re all hand holdy and stuff! So something clearly happened up there on Planet Gold and we need to -- Avengers Assemble!” The last bit was yelled into his face plate that had come down mid sentence. Steve just sighed. He’d known of course that they would have to talk about it, but he’d thought possibly he could have a minute after doing the whole rainbow bridge travel to rest, but of course not. Not when Tony was there to greet them.
“Come elskan, we shall move inside and have the assemble Anthony has called for.” He gently pulled Steve toward the open balcony doors. “It shall not be long til the rest of our team is here, and then we can tell them all that has been learned and then, rest I think. You are hale and hearty, it is true, but the Bifrost does tire out many who use it.”
“It’s interesting, traveling via Bifrost. Like, you feel yourself get turned inside out, and then back again. But you land whole and only slightly unsteady on your feet. Or at least, that is how I feel.”
“For I, it is simply invigorating. I land ready to fight. But I have been using it for many a year, and it is still new for you. Eventually, you will land steady as well.” Thor waited for Steve to place hsi shield bag against the edge of one couch before sitting side by side with him. Steve was still boggling at the surety that Thor tossed out his impending Bifrost usage, as if it was just his new normal.
Steve was still thinking on that when he felt a shiver run across him and he glanced over to Thor who looked utterly bemused to have one large white wing wrapped around his back like a blanket. Before he had a chance to come up with something to say about his wandering wing, the rest of the team came in.
“This is new.” Sam mentions.
“Nah, it’s just about time they got their heads out of their asses.” Nat chimed in, after she plopped down onto Clint’s lap.
“Ya know Nat, I doubted you. I should know better by now.” Clint dropped a few bills onto her open palm and Steve was still trying to find words for anything that was going on around him when Tony came in, finally out of his Iron Man suit.
“Of course the Spy Queen knew, what I want to know, is how she knew, and exactly what it means for us going forward.” He took a sip of the amber liquid in the glass he always carried, and then winked at Steve. “And, I’m dying to know just how good the God is in the sack.”
Nat let out a quick grin before kicking Tony in the shin. Steve chuckled as Tony tried to stop himself from falling off the arm of the chair he’d been sitting on. “Geez. Legolas, leash your spider.”
“Stark, you got a death wish?” Clint glared at him and Nat was just staring at him with one eyebrow quirked
“Boundaries Tony, we’ve talked about them.” He held a hand up at her, but didn’t stop smirking.
“Want to just go up to my room? Or back to Asgard? That’d work too.” Steve asked Thor, only half serious. He did love his team, but sometimes Tony was just too much to deal with. Especially when Steve had recently felt like his insides had been on the outside.
“Aye. I can call for Heimdall right now, we can forgo this step of the plan.” He winked at Steve, which made Tony gasp and Nat huff out a laugh. Then he continued. “It is not as if they want to go with us on our return trip. I can tell Father that the rest of our team was not interested in a visit.”
“Ah, he might not get too mad about his ignored invitation,” Steve tried but failed to hold back a chuckle, but plowed on anyway. Tony was glaring fully and Clint was giving him a thumbs up. Sam just looked intrigued. “He might feel slighted though, you’ll have to be sure to stop him from sending the Destroyer.”
“Okay Abbott and Costello, cut it out. Seriously. What happened up in the golden city?” Tony asked, actually being serious for a change.
“Well, I found out I’m an alien. Thor and his whole family can touch me. Loki has adopted me as his best friend--”
At that San huffed out a, “yeah right.”
“My birth planet is dying and Thor and I are dating.” Steve finished like Sam hadn’t interrupted him.
“Huh?” Clint got out right before Sam and Tony exploded together, throwing out questions right over each other. Steve looked to Nat who was just watching the two of them on the couch together. Under her scrutiny, his wing tightened around Thor’s shoulder on it’s own accord. She nodded at him, before putting two fingers to her mouth and letting out a shrill whistle.
“Please stop. You two are acting like children. How does yelling over each other and not letting them talk, tell us anything?”
“Point.” Sam admitted to Nat before turning to Steve sheepishly. “Sorry, it was a shock. So you’re Asgardian? Thor doesn't have wings.”
“I’m Soros. They have wings.” Steve offered.
“The Soros are an ancient race. Very reclusive and very gentle. Around the time Steven was born and somehow landed on Midgard, a terrible sickness decimated their numbers. They are now on the brink of extinction, as their planet is dying as well.” Thor added, one hand holding Steve’s,
“And the wings? Cause I’ve seen the pictures from bootcamp. Howard kept them, one of the few things that he actually showed me.”
“Ahh, according to Eir and the Queen, the machine that Erskine put me in and the serum itself just made me healthy enough that my natural state was able to shine through.”
“Eir?” Clint asked and Steve nodded to Thor, as they are his healer.
“Eir is a healer at the palace. Quite skilled. Their words are never said wrong, and on Steven’s transformation my mother and Loki, all agree.”
“Okay, now about your people and planet? They are sick?” Sam asked, his therapist voice in full effect.
“Yeah. From what we saw of the panet, it is dying rapidly. All of what is left of my race lives in one city. Odin and Loki are working on a way for us to get there since they aren’t super friendly to visitors so just showing up via bifrost isn’t a good plan.”
“I do not believe the Bifrost could reach the planet at all. They are vicious defenders. The Soros have withstood more than one attempt of being conquered. It is a large part of why it is distressing to see what has happened to them.” Thor was not often solemn, which meant everyone was paying rapt attention to him as he spoke of the troubles.
“So you're off to this planet next huh? You’re taking us with you.” Tony all but demanded.
“Well, I was thinking bout it, but if you’re gonna be a prat about it--”
“Ah, the Brooklyn is back.” Thor murmured and Steve blushed scarlet. Dammit, it'd been completely trained out of him, but a few days with Thor and all of a sudden it was back with a vengeance.
“We are learning so much about you Steve-o.” Clinted crowed from behind Nat.
“It is good to see you let loose just a little bit Steve. You’ve been holding the reins so tight since you woke up, I feel like we’re just now getting to know the real you.” Nat offered him one of her rare real smiles, but it didn’t really buffer against the guilt and the grief that rose up at her comment.
“Well....” He stopped. He didn’t have any clue where he was going with that opening. Luckily Sam saved him.
“It is probably our fault as much as his. There was a lot of confusion about the whole wing thing, and then there were hostile aliens. And you know, we are not the most well adjusted group of individuals. Well, you guys aren’t, I'm the picture of mental health.”
“Too true Falcon, too true. Can we get back to the going off planet thing? Cause I definitely want to visit Asgard, and this planet you hail from.”
“Tony,” they all jumped at the sound of Bruce’s voice. Steve definitely hadn’t heard him come in, and it appeared the other’s hadn’t either. “I highly doubt the King and Queen of Asgard are going to let you bring anything up there for you to try to ‘science it’, as you say.”
“Bruce!” Tony fake gasped. Steve just shook his head. He was getting more and more tired as they sat there, and all he wanted was his bed. And Thor.
“Ah, Banner is correct in that regard. Father does not believe that Midgard should be accelerated in its current arc of intelligence. He would not look kindly on you trying to understand how we do things. It is a cheat, in a way.”
Tony visibly deflated. Steve was working on following. Thor must have finally noticed because one of his large arms snuck behind Steve’s back to hold him close. “Now, I believe Steven needs rest. The first few trips on the Bifrost can drain you. If you have more questions, surely they can wait until he’s slept.”
“Yeah, of course. Steve get some rest. If you have any questions about what you learned up in the sky, and you think I can shed some light on it, just find me tomorrow, okay?” Bruce offered and Steve nodded sleepily. He really was fading fast.
The last thing he remembered was the shocked gasp from Tony and him saying something about damsels as Thor lifted Steve. After that, it was just blackness buffered by heat and safety.