A Twist Of Marvel || Infinity War

13. Names

"And when this- ah, Thanos, won the war?" Thor questioned, leaning forward in his chair.

Naomi's lecture had been more concise the second time, and certain information had been left out after consulting with Tony. Such as the location of the soul stone, which was only currently known by Naomi, Tony, and of course, Gamora. Thor had been an apt listener the entire time, asking questions whenever Naomi took a pause, or failed to elaborate thoroughly. He was especially intrigued by her mention of a different dimension, however she quickly moved onto the topic of Marvel, and he did not ask her anything. She decided to keep the summary of Infinity War as short as possible, wishing the true events to be only known by her, and partially by Tony. Of course, it wasn't her place to keep information from Thor should he wish for it, but Naomi hoped that like Tony, he wouldn't request a casualty list.

"When Thanos won, he destroyed half the universe." Naomi said, the atmosphere in the room turning grave. Tony had fallen silent since she had finally come to explaining the future of their universe. Thor nodded silently at the news, his expression dark and thoughtful. He remained still for several moments, pondering her words.

"Then when do we stop him?" He asked, not showing any doubt in her words. Naomi was slightly surprised at his faith in her honesty, not once had he asked for proof- something that Tony had required a lot of.

"We have a plan," Naomi turned to Tony. "Can you pull up the holograms?" Several flickering screens hovered around the room already, detailing the Infinity Stones or various heroes that Thor had not yet met. Tony nodded in response and moved out of his chair, groaning from sitting down for over an hour straight. Without Tony's extra presence beside her, Naomi suddenly felt somewhat exposed in front of Thor, though he had done nothing to make her uncomfortable. Thankfully, he was quick to question her and end the silence, his voice alight with curiosity.

"So the theory of multiple realities is true then?" The God leaned against the chair back, relaxing after the news of oncoming war. Naomi supposed that war was not a new thing for Thor, so she didn't think on it too hard.

"I suppose. I don't know of any other than mine and this one, but I would say that it's possible." Naomi smiled, happy to see the secret, slightly nerd side of Thor emerge.  He listened to her words with the eyes of a child, curious and full of awe. Ever since he explained the nine realms to Jane, Naomi and the rest of stan twitter knew that Thor was a secret science dork. And a regular one.

"I see. Loki was quite fond of that theory when we were children. He would have been pleased to hear that it was true." Thor spoke with a reminiscent smile on his face. Frowning, Naomi realized with only a small degree of worry that Thor still believed his brother to be dead. After all, Thor's reaction in Ragnarok at discovering Loki hadn't been overly violent, so she supposed there was no harm in telling him now. Anyhow, retrieving both Odin and Loki was a part of the master plan.

"Well, we could always tell him on Asgard." Naomi stated plainly, gaging his reaction to see if she had been too blunt. Thor raised his eyebrows, staring at her for a moment before huffing.

"He's on Asgard then." Thor appeared both pleased and resigned at the same time, a unique combination, but one most likely appropriate for the circumstances. Naomi smirked kindly, glad that Thor seemed to have already suspected Loki's survival.

"Yes, i'm afraid we'll have to coax him out of the throne. He is quite fond of the royal theater at the moment." Naomi stated off-handedly, finding humor in Thor's exasperated appearance.

"Loki is ruling? Where is my father?" He questioned, suddenly leaning forward and turning serious. Noticing the change in tone, Naomi quickly changed her expression, apprehensive about annoying Thor. She didn't believe he would ever hurt her, but she did want him to like her, as conceded as that sounded.

"Don't worry- he's safe on Earth at the moment. Our plan begins with returning Odin to the throne and taking Loki with us." Naomi chewed on her lip, hoping to ease the sudden tension that arose when mention of the Allfather came up. If Thor reacted so seriously, Naomi definitely didn't want to see how Loki would react if she brought up Odin. Probably dramatically.

"Good. I must say, i'm impressed by your knowledge, Swanson. You know more than most prophets would." Thor nodded, handing out the compliment casually. Unfortunately, it turned Naomi bright pink once again, still concerned in the back of her mind that Thor seemed to believe her to be a prophet. She had explained the situation with the movies, and the fact that millions watched them, yet he still referred to her as a 'prophet.' Perhaps it was simply a nickname that he decided to stick with.

"Ahm, thank you." Naomi blushed. "Can I ask something?" Thor smiled comfortingly, gesturing for her to go ahead.

"Since I began, ah, explaining everything, you haven't once asked for proof. I can show you it, if you like, but- why are you just trusting what I say?" Naomi frowned, the redness receding from her cheeks as she asked what she had been pondering over for a while. Thor simply tilted his head, considering his reply.

"Mainly because Stark clearly values your words, and I know him to be precise in whom he trusts." Thor stroked his beard as he continued, Naomi remaining silent. "And perhaps, because I can see your honesty. I have lived my life with the lies of my brother, and even my father. The truth in you stands out, from my experience." Satisfied with his answer, Thor nodded to her before rising from his chair, stretching with a grunt before walking to examine the various holograms around the room.

Naomi was left in her chair with two empty ones around her, struck by Thor's words. She didn't blush from them as she had before, because the integrity of them was too sincere for blushing. As she sat, Naomi realized what a noble king Thor would have made, if he had not chosen to reject the throne to avoid corruption. However, the thought of Thor leading his people reminded Naomi of another question she had yet to ask. During the events of Thor: Ragnarok and Infinity War, all of the people that Thor cared for, excluding Jane and the Avengers, were killed. Even the Asgardian people were beaten down into a fourth of their population, probably even less with the attacks of Hela. Of course, the most prevailing among these tragedies was the death of Loki. Thor had only just learned of his survival, and Naomi loathed having to tell him that Loki had been destined to die in a month before her arrival. With the current plan, Loki's life, along with the Asgardian population, would be spared- but it was still a burden to know that if the plan went awry, Loki's demise had already been written. With this in mind, Naomi too rose from her chair, and stood as she watched Thor move across the room.

"I need to ask something else." She called out, bringing his attention back to her. With a look at her face, Thor remained where he stood, their distance bringing a strange sense of royal formality to the setting. Naomi swallowed thickly as Thor waited for her to speak.

"I told you that when Thanos won, he wiped out half the universe. I've seen who died, both from Thanos's victory and along the way... I don't want to keep secrets from you, so I have to ask." Naomi paused, clasping her hands together.

"Do you want names?" Her words rang out in the room, followed by silence. Naomi knew Tony was listening, and made a note that if Thor was to say yes, she would need to tell him away from the cameras and microphones of the facility. She knew of Tony's curiosity, and if he had the information ready at his fingertips, he might be tempted to see it, even if he had asked her not to tell him.

Thor's stance was relaxed at he looked at her from across the floor. His eyes searched hers, his face suddenly tired, reminding her terribly of his manner upon the Guardians ship. He had been so lost, reeling from the death of Loki that he felt he had nothing left to lose. Naomi felt her throat thicken at the idea of telling him the fate of his loved ones, but she knew it was her duty if he asked.

"No." Thor decided, and Naomi slumped in relief, letting out a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. "What you saw is no longer the future," he continued. "What matters, is preventing the deaths of any that were affected by Thanos."

Naomi smiled, more certain than ever that Thor would have made a great king, yet thankful he had chosen to be a better man.