Thor’s heart had changed.
The cracks Loki had left behind had somehow made him whole.
He no longer burned with the restless need to prove himself. The throne, glory, endless battles... they all felt strangely distant now. Once, the thought of living a quiet life would have driven him mad. Now, every time Jane Foster smiled at him, he found himself thinking that perhaps peace wasn’t such a terrible fate after all.
If this was the rest of his life...
He could accept it.
Unfortunately, life rarely respected anyone’s plans.
Just as Thor and his newly acknowledged girlfriend finished preparing lunch, a convoy of black Chevrolet SUVs rolled to a stop outside Selvig’s house.
"They’re back?" Darcy Lewis groaned, peering through the window. "What else could they possibly want? They already confiscated everything from the lab. They even took my MP3 player. Unless they’re here to apologize and pay us back, I’m not interested."
Dr. Erik Selvig had stumbled onto phenomena modern science couldn’t explain. Using equipment he’d designed himself, he’d recorded anomalies that S.H.I.E.L.D. considered far too sensitive to leave in civilian hands.
So Coulson had seized the entire lab.
To S.H.I.E.L.D.’s credit, he’d offered financial compensation on the spot, even writing a check. Jane had refused it.
Considering how secret organizations usually handled these situations, they had gotten off lightly.
"...Maybe they didn’t take everything," Jane admitted, sounding slightly guilty.
When Thor had escaped the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility the previous night, he’d casually grabbed her research notebook on the way out.
Surely they hadn’t mobilized three SUVs over a single notebook...
Had they?
"They could be here asking for damages," Selvig said.
Everyone looked at him.
"Thor injured quite a few of their people yesterday."
Privately, Selvig made a firm decision.
If they demanded compensation...
He was going to throw himself onto the floor and start acting every one of his fifty-plus years.
If government agents wanted to play hardball, he could play elderly victim.
Nine people stepped out of the SUVs.
Selvig immediately realized this wasn’t going to be a simple conversation.
Six of them were obvious security personnel.
The remaining three were another matter.
One was Phil Coulson, the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who had confiscated the lab and negotiated with him the night before.
But this time, Coulson wasn’t leading.
He stood respectfully beside a stern-looking Asian woman with long black hair, and both of them flanked a young blond man.
Selvig studied him.
He’s the one in charge.
The assumption proved correct.
After the three entered the house, the security team started to follow.
The blond man merely glanced over his shoulder.
He didn’t say a word.
The guards immediately stopped outside.
Selvig’s suspicion hardened into certainty.
That young man was, of course, Evenson.
As Fury’s special envoy, he effectively outranked everyone present for this mission.
Before he could say a single word, Selvig, Jane, and Darcy surrounded him.
"My MP3 player!"
Darcy pointed accusingly.
"I want it back."
Jane crossed her arms.
"Thor acted in self-defense."
"And that notebook belongs to me."
"I’m not giving it back."
Evenson blinked.
Then turned toward Coulson.
"...You robbed them?"
"We requisitioned the materials," Coulson corrected with practiced professionalism.
"I believe ’requisitioned’ is the proper term."
Evenson sighed.
"Give everything back."
The three scientists lit up.
"Most of it isn’t useful to us anyway."
Their smiles immediately became more complicated.
Selvig frowned.
"That’s easy for you to say."
"You clearly don’t understand the value of our research."
"Perhaps not."
Evenson stepped around him without slowing.
"Because compared to what I’m dealing with..."
"...your research and my work aren’t even in the same category."
His eyes settled on Thor.
His expression became solemn.
He stepped back, placed one hand over the other, turned them in a practiced motion, bowed deeply, and spread both arms.
It was an unmistakably Asgardian salute.
"It is an honor to meet you."
"Thor Odinson."
"Son of Allfather Odin."
"Crown Prince of Asgard."
"Heir to the Nine Realms."
"Master of Thunder."
Thor, I am honored by your presence."
The room fell silent.
Selvig.
Jane.
Darcy.
All three stared.
Until now, Thor’s stories had sounded impossible, even if recent events had made them harder to dismiss.
But hearing a S.H.I.E.L.D. representative address him with complete seriousness...
That was another matter entirely.
Either Thor really was who he claimed to be...
Or S.H.I.E.L.D. had started hiring exceptionally committed psychiatrists.
Thor tilted his head.
"Have we met?"
The others only saw an odd gesture.
Thor recognized it immediately.
It was an ancient Asgardian greeting.
"No."
Evenson pulled out a chair and sat at the dining table as though he’d been invited.
"But I know who you are."
Thor nodded slowly.
That made sense.
He had visited Earth only a handful of times across the centuries.
Anyone he’d known back then would have been long dead.
The realization drew his eyes toward Jane.
For a brief moment, sadness flickered across his face.
"I have a few questions," Evenson said without preamble.
"Your arrival has made a great many people nervous."
"They’ve asked me to find out exactly what’s going on."
That wasn’t an exaggeration.
Evenson would have bet good money Nick Fury had already reported the situation to the World Security Council.
Fury disliked politicians almost as much as everyone else did, but this was far too significant to keep off the books.
Thor smiled faintly.
"I’m no longer the Crown Prince."
A trace of disappointment crept into his voice.
"But... I’ll answer your questions."
Between the respectful Asgardian greeting and Evenson’s order to return Jane’s confiscated belongings, Thor had formed a favorable impression of him.
Evenson nodded.
"Then I only have three."
He leaned forward.
"Why did you come to Earth?"
"What are you here to do?"
"And..."
"When are you leaving?"
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