In Wanda’s experience, even with what limited pieces she’s seen of the galaxy, most planets look like planets. They’re generally round, and it’s contents are generally undistinguishable from anyone looking from above. This is not the case when it comes to Asgard. As she and Thor begin their approach, Asgard looks like a city on a hill. A smoldering, ruined city, but a city all the same. They come at the planet from below, which somehow seems to be a mirrored reflection of the city above, and Wanda isn’t sure how any of this works but it is truly a sight to behold.
This proves to be less so for Thor. Sorrow rolls off him in waves for the home and people that he’s lost, and she reaches forward, after a moment, taking his hand and giving it a small squeeze.
“Are you sure he’s here?”
He glances back to her, giving her hand a grateful squeeze in return. “If Asgardian magic is what has returned him to life, then there’s nowhere else he will be. Given the state of things, he would have been hard pressed to find a way off the planet.”
She nods, taking that in, before tipping her head to the side curiously. “When you say ‘reborn’ …”
“The expression is not literal,” Thor grins. “It’s more … metaphorical.”
That is a bit of a relief. She would regret taking Thor on this journey if what they were going to wind up with was a literal infant – and at this point, a likely dead one. Despite her friendship with Wong, Asgardian magic seems to be far out of her depth and she’s quite comfortable keeping it that way. Eventually, they set down on somewhere that seems stable enough to stay steady, and disembark.
“I can do this quickly, if you like?” Wanda asks from midway down the gangplank. “Find him and bring him back?” She knows how she would feel if someone asked her to walk the ruins of Sokovia, even for Pietro –she would do it, but she would regret it all the same.
Thor glances over and greets her with a warm smile. “I appreciate your concern, but I should do this.” He pauses. “I need to do this.”
Wanda nods, before making the rest of the way to the ground, ready to follow in step next to him. “Then lead the way.”
And lead the way he does. There’s nowhere Thor goes that doesn’t have some kind of story attached to it, and Asgard has more than most. As they walk he’s happy to tell her all of them, despite the ruins in their midst. She can tell that each story is bittersweet in the way it could never be recreated, but she appreciates each personal touch all the same.
They’re rounding a particular corner in what used to be a grove, if the burnt out trees are any indication and suddenly a rock comes flying out of nowhere to smack Thor in the side of the head. Wanda ducks behind him out of instinct, using him as a shield as she peers around to see where the projectile had come from.
“Back, trespassers,” a booming voice echoes through the grove, and the two of them turn to see what seems to be a fairly large and muscular man with long dark hair and a rather large sword. “Or face the wrath of the guardian of this place.”
“Who are you?” Thor blinks, confused for a moment, almost as though he’s forgotten why they came. Wanda, on the other hand, isn’t looking at the man itself, but more unanswered questions. Like, for example, the way the man takes a look at Thor, and almost as though in a shimmer, buffs his chest out a little bit further and makes his arms a little bit bigger. It’s a subtle change, but a change all the same.
“I … I am the Grove Guardian. Guardian of the Grove.” The man stammers, before crossing his arms in front of his chest. “I command the power of the gods and caution you to turn back before their wrath is brought upon you.”
“Will it now?” Wanda’s bravado slips out as she moves to step in front of Thor. Thor seems confused, but trusts her enough to follow her lead. “And what if I do not believe in your gods?”
“Then … then that is your mistake.” The man nods. “For their wrath will be swift and … total. Especially for nonbelievers.”
“Mmm.” She smirks, before raising her hands eyes glowing red as she reaches for the threads of his illusion. “We’ll see about that?”
He seems to recoil in the face of her power, and the image flickers as Wanda begins to dig her fingers into it and tearing it apart. “What are you doing?” Briefly the image is replaced with that of a teenage boy, likely not older than Peter, before it snaps back to the man again. “Stop that!”
“Loki?” Thor finally puts two and two together, and that seems to be the nail in the illusion’s coffin. The image vanishes, and the teen looks between the two of them warily.
“Depends who wants to know.”
“My name is Wanda,” she supplies, before reaching over and placing a hand on Thor’s arm. “And this is Thor. We’ve been looking for you for a long time.”
Thor glances over at her, as though there’s so many things he wants to say, but he waits and lets Wanda take the lead, not wanting to overload his brother who seems to not recognize him. Loki still seems wary, glancing between them, but his eyes especially lingering on Thor, like there is a puzzle there he can’t quite put together.
“Why were you looking for me?”
“Because we heard you might want to see the universe,” she says with a small smile. “We have a ship. We could take you anywhere you’d like to go.”
Loki takes that in, before crossing his arms in front of his chest. “And why should I trust you?”
Wanda glances back over to Thor, and he takes that as his cue, making his way closer and shrugging. “What do you have to lose if you do?”
Loki glances back over his shoulder, studying the charred scenery for a moment, before turning back to the two of them again with a nod. “Fine. But I have some conditions. I don’t do manual labor, I am not doing any kind of ‘repayment’ for you rescuing me, and I get my own room on the ship.”
“Deal,” Thor says with a grin.
“Great. I’ll get my things.”
As Loki disappears into whatever hovel he’s created for himself, Wanda glances back to Thor over her shoulder with a smirk.
“How disappointed he will be when he learns that no one on the ship has their own room.”
He laughs. “I think with the money we’ve earned working with the Guardians, we can afford a ship of our own.” He pauses, before reaching over for her hand again. “Thank you again, Wanda. You have no idea how much this means to me.”
“I think I have a small idea,” she acknowledges.
“If I could return the favor, I would.”
“I know,” she smiles, before turning to face him more, standing closer than she probably should, but when you’ve been inside someone’s mind the way she has with Thor, physical boundaries become much less awkward. “But I’m glad that I could help. It’s nice, sometimes, being reminded that all of this can be used for good.”
One hand comes up, resting against the side of her face gently, his thumb brushing her cheekbone. “I think you always intended to do good. That was never a doubt.” She smiles softly, starting to lean into him, intending to close the gap between them when Loki’s voice returns, jerking them apart.
“So,” he grins, clearly aware that he interrupted the moment, but not caring. “Where are we going first?”
Wanda sighs, before rubbing the back of her neck. “Xandar for a new ship, then … perhaps we should head home?”
Her home, not Thor’s home, at least not as directly as the soil beneath their feet is. Thor glances to her, surprised, before nodding. “I think that’s a splendid idea. To Xandar.”
thor and wanda's excellent adventure [5/5] | marvel cinematic universe | 1,396 | set 7
In Wanda’s experience, even with what limited pieces she’s seen of the galaxy, most planets look like planets. They’re generally round, and it’s contents are generally undistinguishable from anyone looking from above. This is not the case when it comes to Asgard. As she and Thor begin their approach, Asgard looks like a city on a hill. A smoldering, ruined city, but a city all the same. They come at the planet from below, which somehow seems to be a mirrored reflection of the city above, and Wanda isn’t sure how any of this works but it is truly a sight to behold.
This proves to be less so for Thor. Sorrow rolls off him in waves for the home and people that he’s lost, and she reaches forward, after a moment, taking his hand and giving it a small squeeze.
“Are you sure he’s here?”
He glances back to her, giving her hand a grateful squeeze in return. “If Asgardian magic is what has returned him to life, then there’s nowhere else he will be. Given the state of things, he would have been hard pressed to find a way off the planet.”
She nods, taking that in, before tipping her head to the side curiously. “When you say ‘reborn’ …”
“The expression is not literal,” Thor grins. “It’s more … metaphorical.”
That is a bit of a relief. She would regret taking Thor on this journey if what they were going to wind up with was a literal infant – and at this point, a likely dead one. Despite her friendship with Wong, Asgardian magic seems to be far out of her depth and she’s quite comfortable keeping it that way. Eventually, they set down on somewhere that seems stable enough to stay steady, and disembark.
“I can do this quickly, if you like?” Wanda asks from midway down the gangplank. “Find him and bring him back?” She knows how she would feel if someone asked her to walk the ruins of Sokovia, even for Pietro –she would do it, but she would regret it all the same.
Thor glances over and greets her with a warm smile. “I appreciate your concern, but I should do this.” He pauses. “I need to do this.”
Wanda nods, before making the rest of the way to the ground, ready to follow in step next to him. “Then lead the way.”
And lead the way he does. There’s nowhere Thor goes that doesn’t have some kind of story attached to it, and Asgard has more than most. As they walk he’s happy to tell her all of them, despite the ruins in their midst. She can tell that each story is bittersweet in the way it could never be recreated, but she appreciates each personal touch all the same.
They’re rounding a particular corner in what used to be a grove, if the burnt out trees are any indication and suddenly a rock comes flying out of nowhere to smack Thor in the side of the head. Wanda ducks behind him out of instinct, using him as a shield as she peers around to see where the projectile had come from.
“Back, trespassers,” a booming voice echoes through the grove, and the two of them turn to see what seems to be a fairly large and muscular man with long dark hair and a rather large sword. “Or face the wrath of the guardian of this place.”
“Who are you?” Thor blinks, confused for a moment, almost as though he’s forgotten why they came. Wanda, on the other hand, isn’t looking at the man itself, but more unanswered questions. Like, for example, the way the man takes a look at Thor, and almost as though in a shimmer, buffs his chest out a little bit further and makes his arms a little bit bigger. It’s a subtle change, but a change all the same.
“I … I am the Grove Guardian. Guardian of the Grove.” The man stammers, before crossing his arms in front of his chest. “I command the power of the gods and caution you to turn back before their wrath is brought upon you.”
“Will it now?” Wanda’s bravado slips out as she moves to step in front of Thor. Thor seems confused, but trusts her enough to follow her lead. “And what if I do not believe in your gods?”
“Then … then that is your mistake.” The man nods. “For their wrath will be swift and … total. Especially for nonbelievers.”
“Mmm.” She smirks, before raising her hands eyes glowing red as she reaches for the threads of his illusion. “We’ll see about that?”
He seems to recoil in the face of her power, and the image flickers as Wanda begins to dig her fingers into it and tearing it apart. “What are you doing?” Briefly the image is replaced with that of a teenage boy, likely not older than Peter, before it snaps back to the man again. “Stop that!”
“Loki?” Thor finally puts two and two together, and that seems to be the nail in the illusion’s coffin. The image vanishes, and the teen looks between the two of them warily.
“Depends who wants to know.”
“My name is Wanda,” she supplies, before reaching over and placing a hand on Thor’s arm. “And this is Thor. We’ve been looking for you for a long time.”
Thor glances over at her, as though there’s so many things he wants to say, but he waits and lets Wanda take the lead, not wanting to overload his brother who seems to not recognize him. Loki still seems wary, glancing between them, but his eyes especially lingering on Thor, like there is a puzzle there he can’t quite put together.
“Why were you looking for me?”
“Because we heard you might want to see the universe,” she says with a small smile. “We have a ship. We could take you anywhere you’d like to go.”
Loki takes that in, before crossing his arms in front of his chest. “And why should I trust you?”
Wanda glances back over to Thor, and he takes that as his cue, making his way closer and shrugging. “What do you have to lose if you do?”
Loki glances back over his shoulder, studying the charred scenery for a moment, before turning back to the two of them again with a nod. “Fine. But I have some conditions. I don’t do manual labor, I am not doing any kind of ‘repayment’ for you rescuing me, and I get my own room on the ship.”
“Deal,” Thor says with a grin.
“Great. I’ll get my things.”
As Loki disappears into whatever hovel he’s created for himself, Wanda glances back to Thor over her shoulder with a smirk.
“How disappointed he will be when he learns that no one on the ship has their own room.”
He laughs. “I think with the money we’ve earned working with the Guardians, we can afford a ship of our own.” He pauses, before reaching over for her hand again. “Thank you again, Wanda. You have no idea how much this means to me.”
“I think I have a small idea,” she acknowledges.
“If I could return the favor, I would.”
“I know,” she smiles, before turning to face him more, standing closer than she probably should, but when you’ve been inside someone’s mind the way she has with Thor, physical boundaries become much less awkward. “But I’m glad that I could help. It’s nice, sometimes, being reminded that all of this can be used for good.”
One hand comes up, resting against the side of her face gently, his thumb brushing her cheekbone. “I think you always intended to do good. That was never a doubt.” She smiles softly, starting to lean into him, intending to close the gap between them when Loki’s voice returns, jerking them apart.
“So,” he grins, clearly aware that he interrupted the moment, but not caring. “Where are we going first?”
Wanda sighs, before rubbing the back of her neck. “Xandar for a new ship, then … perhaps we should head home?”
Her home, not Thor’s home, at least not as directly as the soil beneath their feet is. Thor glances to her, surprised, before nodding. “I think that’s a splendid idea. To Xandar.”
“Xandar. Lovely.” Loki pauses. “What’s Xandar?”