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Chapter Thirty-Six

~Nobody's POV~

Although Kyle- and Bruce- does all he can, Thea is still in a significant amount of pain as the day goes on. Although he doesn't let it on to Thea, Kyle is worried about her. "If that wound becomes infected while we're out here in the middle of nowhere," he warns Bruce in a low voice as Thor moves her inside a tent to block out the elements, the nearly-empty hourglass necklace still swinging brightly from his neck, "Then we're going to run into problems."

Bruce's arms are crossed, his glasses tilted on his nose, "And according to Archer, we will probably need her when we go visit those mermaids tonight."

"She's weak. If she moves too much or gets too excited, those stitches are going to open back up and God knows what will happen then."

It's clear by Kyle's pursed lips that Thea is no more going to go down to the lake tonight than she is fighting three Velah singlehandedly.

Bruce exhales tiredly through his nose, "I get that. What I'm worried about is staying in one place for longer than a short period of time."

Kyle stops going through various medical supplies in a large duffel bag at the outside of the tent. "You think Dracula's after us too?"

"Kyle, I don't think anyone- including Thea- thinks anything different."

There's a pause. Then Kyle sighs, "I know where you're coming from. Trust me, I want to be off of this damn planet as quick as possible too." There's another pause, "We'll just watch Thea for the rest of the day. If she's up to it, fine. If not, if there's the slightest chance she's going to hurt herself, she stays here with her sister and Jane. Natasha might be able to hold the chick fort down."

*

Thea receives multiple visitors throughout the day, although there is a constant rotation of Kyle and Bruce in her tent. Jack tries to cheer her up by regaling various stories of when he spent the summer with Kyle and Max one year, although, in his opinion, Thea laughs way too easily seeing as she has a bloody wound on her side.

At around three o'clock, New York time, Tony pops his head in the tent, "How you doing?"

"Fine," says Thea cheerfully, although Tony narrows his eyes slightly suspiciously, "Doesn't even hurt that badly."

"Hm. What are you made of, Kevlar?"

"Uh," says Thea, who has no idea what Kevlar is, "Yeah. Definitely."

Tony gives her a shrewd look before leaving the tent. As he strolls around a tree with the cooking supplies lounging underneath it, he runs into Kyle, "Is it just me or is Thea a bit to chipper for her situation?"

Kyle rolls his eyes and narrows them simultaneously, making him look even more feline and facetious than normal, "Is she telling you how 'fine' she feels?"

Tony's shrug is enough.

Kyle snorts, "Yeah, well we'll see about that."

*

~Thea's POV~

Of course I want to go to the mermaid lake.

But of course Kyle (or Bruce) won't let me go if I'm feeling bad.

And boy am I feeling bad.

For one thing, the wound hurts like there's no tomorrow. Bruce has given me so pain medication, but it's of the mild variety, and isn't helping that much so that the wound still stings terrifically.

For another, I feel flushed, hot and cold simultaneously, and also very sore, like I don't want to get up. The odds of going down to the lake are not in my favor.

Mid-afternoon finds me lying in a colossal pile of spare pillows and blankets and talking to Leah- or more like listening to Leah.

"I really want to go see the mermaids," she says lightly, hugging Princely tightly, "But Thor and Jane don't think it's a good idea."

"No it is not," I say decisively. "These aren't Ariel mermaids, Leah. They're mean, and they might hurt you."

Leah stops playing with Princely for a moment and then looks up at me. She's dressed in a simple collection of faded kapris and a light t-shirt, and her hair is still soft and sleek even though we've been traveling for the past three days. "What about you?'

Her question snaps be back to reality, "What do you mean what about me?"

"If the mermaids can hurt me," she says as-a-matter-of-factly, "Then they can hurt you too."

"Well," I say, "I'll be careful. And I'm older. They need me because I'm a girl and mermaids are usually more mean to men."

"Why?"

"Um," I say hesitating both because of Leah's question and a new stream of pain in my side. Through winces, I manage to say, "Because men...uh...they're...uh....it's complicated."

There's movement from the tent, and I see Loki enter. I stifle a groan.

"Oh," says Leah, her eyes swiveling over to Loki with slight apprehension, although I have observed that she has grown more comfortable with being around him. But then she says slightly timidly, "You don't have any snakes with you, do you Loki?"

He smirks, twists his hand, and a copper serpent appears coiled around his hand. Leah shrieks and kicks her legs rapidly before scrambling to hide behind me.

"Loki!" I shout, which causes my throat to burn. Damn it.

He glances at me, then, still smirking, waves his other hand over the snake. With a last flicker of its tongue, it disappears.

"Is it gone?" Leah asks in a muffled voice.

"Yes," I say, glaring at Loki, "It's gone."

"Will it come back?"

I squint at Loki.

He sighs, "No, it's not coming back, Leah."

She pops her head up, looking wary, "Promise?"

Loki rolls his eyes, "I promise."

She cocks her head, looking at him suspiciously. He cocks his head too, looking right back at her, his lips twitching. Leah frowns slightly. So does Loki. She makes a face at him. He makes a face at her.

"Stop copying me!" she wails, and Loki laughs.

Leah grabs Princely, stands up, and walks over to the small container on the other side of the tent. "Do you want something to eat, Thea?"

The idea of food sounds revolting, but I say in as even a voice I can muster, "No thanks Leah."

My sister shrugs, takes out a small sandwich, and then starts munching on it. From behind her, Loki settles down on the side of the tent, then takes out his dagger and begins to sharpen it without paying the slightest bit of attention to us. Ugh. Why can't he just leave.

"Thea," says Leah, chewing unconcernedly on her sandwich, "Will you come live on Asgard when we're done with the mermaids?"

"Uh," I say, "I don't know."

She looks confused, "Don't you want to?"

"I don't know."

"Well why wouldn't you?"

"I don't know."

The last sentence comes out as a groan, and I know that I sound ridiculous right now, but I also don't feel well. The wound in my side is beginning to sting again.

"Oh," says Leah, looking a little sad. "But I miss you."

I almost say, "Well you're here with me now", but instead I say, "I miss you too. But I don't think I get to decide that. Not that I get to decide anything."

I hear what may possibly be a confined chuckle from Loki's direction. I ignore him.

"Well if you do," says Leah, "Then I'll show you this really pretty waterfall that Thor showed me right before we left."

"I think I've had enough waterfalls for a while, Leah."

Leah, who has never liked blood, glances nervously at my wound, "Okay. But it's a nice waterfall! You'll like it!"

"...Yeah," I say, clutching my arm to take away the pain from my side, "Uh sounds good."

Leah's brow furrows so that she reminds me of a perplexed pygmy owl, "Are you feeling okay, Thea? You look sick."

"I'm fine!" I say in a voice too bright to be entirely plausible.

"Are you sure?" asks Leah patiently, still clutching Princely, "You're crying and you look a lot sick-y."

Movement, and before I can say that 'sick-y' is not a word, Loki has crouched by my side. I bat his hand off, "Go away."

He ignores me, tilting my chin up, then feeling my cheeks and forehead. He wipes some of the tears of pain from my face and then just looks at me with an expression of calculating certainty.

"I feel fine!" I say as pertly as possible.

Apparently, my pathetic attempt of being chipper falls flat, and doesn't even justify an answer, because Loki looks at my sister, who looks very concerned as she gazes down at me with her big blue eyes, "Leah, go get Kyle or Bruce, either one. And I want you to stay out of this tent. Your sister has a fever-"

"I do not!"

He raises his voice over mine, "-And it wouldn't do to get you sick as well."

Leah's lip is trembling, "Is she gonna be okay?"

Loki looks exasperated as he tries to talk over my protests, "Thea will be fine, assuming she stops blubbering, otherwise I may have to dispatch her myself." His last word is so vindictive that I clamp my mouth closed.

Apparently, Leah thinks the same thing because, after grabbing Princely, she darts away from the tent, the canvas flap swinging behind her. Loki settles down next to me, then pulls my face back up, feeling my forehead.

"Lo-Loki...!"  I whine.

"Shut up, Thea."

"I'm fine!"

"Shut up."

"I need to go to the lake tonight, Nat can't be the only girl! You guys are going to be-"

"Did I, or did I not tell you to shut up?"

I shut up.

*

Kyle doesn't put up with any of my whining.

"Thea, you're running a damn temperature. Your stiches could burst at any time, and my pain meds can only do so much," he says as he changes the wrappings on my wound. I clench my jaw hard to stop whimpering.

"Kyyyy-"

"Stop being fussy. You, young lady, are not stepping a single toe out of here tonight. You understand me?" He crouches down next to me and narrows his eyes.

"But Ky-"

"You understand me?"

His green eyes are like slits.

"Yes," I squeak.

~Nobody's POV~

When Thor, Sam, Tony, Natasha, Clint, Max, Bruce, and Archer head out of the camp towards the lake, all they are thinking they are doing the best thing for everybody.

They're wrong.

Very wrong.

It might have been safer if they had taken Thea with them.

No.

Actually, it definitely would have been safer if they had taken Thea with them.

You see, with only Loki, Steve, and Jane to guard the camp, there are holes for attack.

Especially for a certain shadowy Velah.

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