Jaden: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Eternity in a Place of My Choosing

Loki stood in his prison chains. Ready to face Odin for his crimes against Earth. Two guards were beside him as was his mother, Frigga.

I leaned closer to Thor who bent down enough to hear me whisper, "Is that my grandmother?"

My question was answered with a slight smile from Thor as well as Loki's greeting to her.

"Hello, Mother. Have I made you proud?" he asked. He may be the god of mischief, but that didn't make me feel that he was any less of an ass for talking that way to the people who had the authority to execute him.

She begged him not to make the situation worse. And of course the idiot had to ask her to define worse.

"Enough! I will speak to the prisoner alone. And then I will speak to his daughter." That last part got my knees shaking. Frigga looked toward me, seeming to have never known of my presence until now.

The three of us left the throne room. Loki, laughing as the door close behind us.

Frigga took me aside, much the same way Thor had on Earth. I wasn't in throne room apparel. But that was going to change within the next hour.

"Do you mind my asking what it was like raising my father?"

Frigga's smile from discovering she had a granddaughter quickly faded at the mention of her son. The reminder of the crimes Loki had committed constantly being brought to the front of her mind every time her eyes landed on me. To say it made me uncomfortable was an understatement.

What would happen if I was allowed to stay here because I helped defeat my father? Would I be looked upon as a hero? A friend? Or someone to fear as the people of Asgard feared Loki.

I decided then to take my leave of the queen. Now dressed in throne room apparel, I walked the halls of the palace until I found Thor in the banquet hall with his friends. All seemed pleased to see me, which was a nice change as compared to how everyone else in Asgard viewed me.

I guess they were surprised to hear that Loki's previously unknown child fought against him instead of with him. That was what I was going to base my argument on if Odin gave me a choice in where I spent the rest of my life.

Thor's friends asked a million questions about me. Though I wasn't sure how to answer most of them. Not because the answers were possibly classified according to Earth's standards, but because I didn't know the answer at all.

It felt like we had been talking for hours, and I was actually enjoying myself for once, when two guards came to take me into the throne room for a chat with Odin.

He wasn't in his throne this time. My escorts left almost as soon as we arrived, closing the doors behind them.

"My son, Thor, says you are a valiant warrior, Miss Jaden. Though your powers are connected to your physical strength."

I nodded in confirmation to his statement. But I never said a word until I was expected to answer out of respect to Odin's authority. He was the king after all.

"You have done a great service to Asgard. And for that we thank you." I nodded once again, and he continued. "Though we cannot forget your relation to Loki, no matter how long ago it was discovered by you, you have been granted the choice of where you will spend your eternity. Brought to Asgard only when summoned by the king."

Knowing this was his way of asking where I would like to go, I said, "I would request return to Midgard, Your Majesty. Along with the return of my powers." With a tip of his scepter, I felt my powers returning.

"You will be known as the goddess of truth and knowledge. Not even Loki will be able to lie to you," he said, granting my requests.

Beams of light poured from my body and within seconds, I was back on Earth. Back to the exact spot where Thor and Loki took me to Asgard. The road was no longer blocked like it was when we left. No, I was blocking traffic. Brakes squealed as cars came to an abrupt stop.

Being a SHIELD agent, you don't want to be identified or recognized by the public. So I turned invisible almost as soon as I landed. My powers were so much stronger now that Odin had removed any residual effects from the spells Loki placed over me.

I teleported to an area behind a tree grove, turned visible, and walked over to a nearby park bench. SHIELd agents were sure to come within the hour and see the markings left behind by the bi-frost.

And once again, I was right. Barton was the agent to come and collect me. I wasn't wearing cuffs as I had expected, but I did have to explain my sudden reappearance, not that the rest of the avengers would help me out of this. At least that's what I thought was going on. But there was another reason that I didn't want to get into or think about because Coulson died before he could tell me about it himself.

Clint handed me a folder labeled T.A.H.I.T.I. I didn't like where this was going. Underneath that file was Coulson's. To confirm what I'm pretty sure I already knew, I opened his file. He was marked as deceased.

Under family, there were his mother and father, both listed as having passed on. But there was another line in this category. A line that wasn't there before.

"He always saw me as his daughter," I said aloud, drawing Clint's attention to me. "I guess he decided to make it official." He placed his hand on my shoulder. It was comforting, but not comforting enough.

"He did. You officially have a last name." While his statement did put a smile on my face, it wasn't a happy one. Having a last name wasn't important to me. Having a real family was. And that's what I got. Even if my new dad wasn't alive to tell me that himself.