Chapter 25
Loki’s first week at Midtown is full of highs and lows.
Elle is a quiet girl, if overly clever. She rarely raises her hand but, when she does, she speaks at length on very specific topics. She seems to know very little about American history, but could give a speech on early 1800s British politics. She does not seem very interested in math or science, but she never gets the answers wrong. Her English teacher is thrilled to have someone so interested in literature, and she and Elle have a long discussion about Lydia versus Georgiana’s treatment in Pride and Prejudice.
Elle doesn’t mingle with her classmates often. She seems close to Peter Parker and cordial with his friends. She doesn’t mind talking to her classmates, but she rarely starts conversations.
(Except for the time she verbally eviscerated Flash for calling Peter “Penis Parker.”)
Some other highlights from Elle’s first week of school:
She has a heat stroke on the second day of gym. (Well, technically it’s heat exhaustion, which is slightly less dangerous. She still feels like shit, though, and has to spend a couple hours in the nurse’s office.)
When nuclear weapons are mentioned in passing during history, she internally freaks out. She thinks about how lucky Midgard is that the All Father never cared to pay attention to them. After all, the All Father liked taking away his children’s toys.
But the most upsetting day is only a week or so after school starts. The students had been ushered into the theater for a presentation. Peter and Elle split off — Peter gets on the subway to go home and Elle takes the long walk to the Tower to clear her head.
Steve is sitting on the couch when Loki comes home from school. Steve tries to greet her, but she rushes past him. She runs straight to the bathroom and slams the door.
Steve would leave her alone, normally. He remembers being a teenager and wishing he was well enough to be left alone. But he’s pretty sure she’s throwing up.
Steve knocks gently against the door. “Are you alright?”
Loki doesn’t respond. He can hear running water and soft footsteps from inside the bathroom. Finally, what feels like hours later, Loki opens the door. Her eyes are watery and her body is shaking.
“Sorry,” Loki says. “I’m going to go to my room.” She sidesteps Steve.
“You know you can talk to me about anything, right?” Steve says. Loki just stares at him. “You don’t have to talk about whatever’s making you upset. But if you want to, I’m always here.”
Loki nods curtly and flees.
Loki refuses to leave her room at dinner. Thor says she’s been holed up in there since she got home. Thor, however, also says that Loki has always been prone to fits of isolation. It’s the same reason she feels the need to travel around the realm every couple decades — sometimes, she just wants to be left alone.
Tony and Steve aren’t convinced.
“She was just so rattled when she came home from school today,” Steve says. “I’m worried about her.”
Tony sighs. “I’m going to call Peter. See if he knows anything.”
Peter picks up on the second ring. “Hi, Mr. Stark!” he says. “Is everything alright?”
“Mostly,” Tony says. “Loki’s been acting strange since she got home from school. Do you have any idea what’s going on?”
Peter sighs. “Yeah, I do. But I think it’s Loki’s story to tell.”
“She hasn’t been willing to talk to me or Steve yet today.” Tony sighs. “I don’t know what to do.”
“I think you should just ask her,” Peter says. “I really can’t help you with this.”
Tony knocks softly on Loki’s door. He stands there for so long that he thinks she isn’t going to answer. But, finally, the door creaks open.
“What do you want?” Loki asks. She looks more disheveled than she would ever let someone see. Hair is falling out of her braids and she looks so tired.
“What’s going on with you, kid,” Tony says. “You look terrible.”
“Wow, thanks.” Loki snorts. “You sure know how to flatter a girl.”
Tony smiles. “Anytime.” He steps into Loki’s room before she can close the door on him. “But seriously, what’s going on?”
Loki sighs. “Would you believe me if I said that it’s nothing?”
Tony shakes his head. “Probably not.”
“Fine,” Loki says. “We just had an assembly in school that freaked me out a bit. I’ll be fine.”
“What was the assembly about?” Tony asks.
Loki shakes her head. “Nothing important.”
Tony raises his eyebrow. “You are much too upset for it to be about ‘nothing important.’”
Loki won’t meet Tony’s eyes. “It was about abuse.
Tony freezes. He knew, growing up, that something was off. That normal parents cared more about their children than some dead superhero. He doesn’t quite know what a normal family is like — and he’s starting to think Loki doesn’t either.
“We should talk,” Tony says.
“I’d really rather not.” Loki attempts a smile, but it’s more akin to a grimace.
“Have I ever told you about my dad?” Tony asks.
Loki and Tony end up talking until the middle of the night about shitty fathers and shittier coping mechanisms. They talk about abuse, yes, but also healing. (Loki won’t admit that Tony understands what she’s going through. They both know it. And that’s enough.)
James knows he cannot keep visiting the museum. Routines are too easy to replicate, paint too big of a target. But the man in the pictures, Lt. Bucky Barnes looks like him. And Captain America looks so much like Steve, which is the reason James came to DC in the first place. James knows he needs to stop coming to the museum — but he doesn’t know what to do next.